Maruti says production at Manesar plant halted

NEW DELHI |
Fri Oct 7, 2011 10:16pm IST

NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Maruti Suzuki, India’s top carmaker, has halted production at one of its plants as a workers’ strike resurfaced, a spokesman said on Friday, dealing a further blow to production in the midst of the festive season.

The fresh strike come just days after Maruti said a month-long strike at its Manesar plant in Haryana that cost the company about $135 million in lost output ended, after workers agreed to sign discipline agreements.

“Workers have gone on strike at around 4 PM (1030GMT) today,” the spokesman told Reuters, without giving further details.

The plant produces about 1,200 vehicles a day, including the popular Swift and A-Star hatchbacks and the DZiRE and SX4 sedans.

Representatives of the workers were not available for comment.

Workers at Maruti’s Manesar factory walked out on Aug. 29 after the company demanded they sign a “good conduct bond”, saying some had engaged in sabotage.

Maruti, which sold 85,565 cars in September, has already suffered a production loss of about 22,000 cars. It is 54.2 percent owned by Japan’s Suzuki Motor.

Dismal sales at the company, with a 21 percent slide last month, is likely to drag India’s slowing car sales further. An industry body will announce India’s car sales figures for September on Monday.

Maruti had earlier said it would not compromise with the workers who were refusing to sign the discipline agreement, and was steadily hiring new employees.

Maruti shares, valued at $6.4 billion, closed up 2.55 percent at 1113.20 rupees in a strong Mumbai market ahead of the news.

(Reporting by Anurag Kotoky; Editing by Subhadip Sircar)

Article source: http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/reuters/INtopNews/~3/XXUUPmof7S4/idINIndia-59771120111007

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