Strike at Samsung plant in India into its 25th day

Analysts mixed on impact of labour unrest on country's aim to draw foreign investment

- Rohini Mohan

BENGALURU - The jury is out on whether a 25-day workers' strike at a Samsung Electronics factory in Tamil Nadu has put India's ambitions to become a global manufacturing powerhouse and attract foreign investment at risk.

While some analysts and companies The Straits Times spoke to raised concerns about India's labour unrest being a deterrent to foreign investors, others have suggested the strike's effects will be limited to Samsung, with the country's rapid growth, lucrative domestic market and skilled workforce remaining big draws.

Analysts said that the strike - India's biggest in recent years - could easily be resolved if government authorities, Samsung and the workers find a way to work together effectively.

The strike over higher pay began on Sept 9, but has shown no signs of ending any time soon, with not even a single round of talks being held.

On Oct 2, the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi - a symbol of civil disobedience for Indians - workers held a token hunger fast in hopes of hastening the start of tripartite talks with the company and government officials.

"We are engaging with both parties to find an amicable solution," a senior official from the Tamil Nadu government told ST.

Another senior bureaucrat said: "The government is supporting the company in ensuring that production continues. Our objective is that industry should not be affected. At the same time, whatever genuine aspirations the workers have, we will get it sorted." Around 1,200 of South Korean electronics maker Samsung's 1,800 workers at a plant situated in Tamil Nadu's Sriperumbudur industrial hub, just outside the capital Chennai, have been camping outside the premises.

The plant makes refrigerators, TVs and washing machines, and accounted for a fifth of Samsung's annual revenue of US$12 billion (S$15.6 billion) in India in 2022 to 2023.