Layoff Starts In Automobile Sector: General Motors Fires All 1419 Workers From Pune Factory

General Motors, one of the leading automobile exporters in India has decided to fire all 1419 workers from their Pune factory.

As per the reports, no prior permission was taken from the Labor Ministry was sought.

Is this the start of automobile layoffs in India?

General Motors Fires All 1419 Employees

General Motors has fired all 1419 employees from their Talegaon factory in the outskirts of Pune. 

A notice was pasted at their factory entrance, wherein this decision was informed.

No prior permission was sought from the Govt and Labor Minister by General Motors before taking this decision. As per the notice, they have invoked section 25 of the Industrial Dispute Act, wherein no permission is needed.

The notice by General Motors stated, “Since the lay-off has been declared largely because of Covid-19, being a natural calamity, no prior permission from the appropriate authority has been sought, nor is the same necessary under section 25-M of the ID Act,”

The impacted employees will be provided with 50% of their basic pay and allowance, as per their last drawn salary.

Sandeep Bhegade, President, General Motors Employees Union has stated that they will contest this decision and will file a case at the court.

Why General Motors Fired The Employees?

Talegaon factory is General Motors’ only factory in India, which is used for exporting their cars from India to other nations. Production was stopped at this factory since December, 2020.

Infact, General Motors had stopped selling cars in India (their Chevrolet series) in 2017, and only exported cars from their two factories Halol in Gujarat and Talegaon in Pune. Halol factory was acquired by MG Motors in 2019.

Meanwhile, talks were between General Motors and Shanghai based Great Wall Motors for a possible acquisition of the Talegaon factory as General Motors decided to fully quit India.

But due to the border and diplomatic tension between India and China, this deal was postponed.

Now, since all the employees are fired from the Talegaon factory, it’s clear that General Motors is in no mood to resume their production. Only hope for the employees is that the Talegaon factory gets acquired by any auto major, and the production starts.

We will keep you updated, as more details come in.