Renault Nissan breached pact with workers' union over Covid safety protocols: Madras HC

The Madras High Court on Friday pointed out that Renault Nissan has breached the agreement regarding COVID-19 safety protocols it signed with its worker union - Renault Nissan India Thozhilalar Sangam (RNITS). The High Court added Nissan Renault needs to implement the agreement in full.

Earlier in May, RNITS had approached the court stating that Renault Nissan management was not adhering to COVID-19 safety protocols. The court on May 31 asked the RNITS and Renault Nissan to arrive at a solution for this problem. The automaker and its worker union had agreed to implement the empty pitch ratio of 3:1 in the trim and chassis and body shop.

"Simply put, after three cars in the conveyor belt, one slot will be empty so that a worker need not move to the next workstation to complete his work," K Balaji Krishnan, President, RNITS, told news agency IANS.

The Renault Nissan management failed to adhere to the 3:1 empty pitch ratio in production line 1, according to IANS.  RNITS again approached the Madras High Court claiming that Renault Nissan had not adhered to the agreed-upon COVID-19 safety protocols in its production plants.

The Madras High Court has stated the Renault Nissan management had breached the agreement signed with the worker union. It explained that it can't accept the empty pitch ratio being followed in only one of the two production lines.

The High Court said that Renault Nissan had later agreed to also implement the 3:1 pitch ratio on its production line 1. The court added that both parties can discuss this aspect later.

Laying emphasis on the high rate of COVID-19 infections amongst workers, the Madras High Court said that terms of exemption from lockdown have to be strictly adhered to.

Also Read: COVID-19: Madras HC directs TN govt to inspect Renault-Nissan's Chennai plant