Hundreds of workers strike at major Samsung factory in India

Production at a key Samsung Electronics plant in southern India was disrupted by hundreds of employees striking for higher wages on Tuesday, as top executives sought to resolve a rare episode of labor unrest.. . South Korea-based Samsung, Indias biggest consumer electronics company, counts the country as akey growth market, competing with the likes of LG Electronicsto make everything from televisions and refrigerators to smartphones.. ..

The strike-hit plant in Sriperumbudur, the smaller of Samsungs two Indian factories, employs around 1,800 people and makes electronic products rather than smartphones.. ..

But it still contributes 20% to 30% of Samsungs annual $12 billion revenue in India, said two sources with direct knowledge of the matter, speaking on condition of anonymity.. . Posters saying Indefinite Strike went up outside the factory near the city of Chennai, where hundreds of workers in company uniforms set up tents to shade themselves from the heat.. . Muthukumar told Reuters the strike will continue for a third day on Wednesday.. ..

About half of the factorys daily production was affected when many workers stayed away on Monday, and the protesters continue to press their demands for higher wages, better hours and, most importantly, want Samsung to recognize the formation of a union backed by the Centre of Indian Trade Unions group.. ..

A strike at this point puts a spanner in Samsungs production ramp-up ahead of the all-important festive season sales beginning October, said Prabhu Ram, a vice president at Cybermedia Research.. . . In South Korea, the 36,500 members of Samsung Electronics biggest worker union who have been demanding higher wages and benefits, held a strike for several days in July and August.. ..

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