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Frontline
Dec. 17 - 30, 2005
LABOUR ISSUES
A risky trade
AMAN SETHI
in New Delhi
Metalworkers of the Okhla Industrial Area in Delhi, like their
counterparts elsewhere in the country, are at the mercy of both their
machines and the factory management.
PICTURES: SHANKER RAMASWAMI
The first stage of metal polishing at Michael Aram Exports in the
Okhla Industrial Area in Delhi.
This is the final part of a three-part series.
THE truck slowly plots its way through the grid that is the Okhla
Industrial Area, its wheels throwing up dense clouds of dust. The
broad, unpaved roads have been pounded flat by the constant passing
of trucks like this one; the air is thick with the rhythmic clatter
of metal on metal and the low throbbing of engines. The Industrial
Area is a surreal space - an operating theatre where men and machines
are fused into hyper-efficient cyborgs specifically designed to
wrench unyielding metal into sleek, functional forms. Sharp-edged
cutters scythe through sheets of steel, high-speed grinders and
buffers transform dull kora maal (raw material) into shiny "final
pieces".
This journey from kora maal to final pieces is fraught with danger.
Apart from the ever-present danger posed by the machinery and
chemicals, the shop floor is enveloped in a thick haze of metal dust
that finds its way into the eyes, lungs and digestive tracts of the
workers. "Working with metal is like negotiating a truce," explains
Amalkant, a metal polisher. "If you are not careful, the same machine
that gets you your daily wage will chop off your hand in a second."
As a polisher for Michael Aram Exports Pvt. Ltd., Amalkant is charged
with making rough-cut, dull metal items sourced form local
manufacturers into glowing art works designed for homes and offices
across the world.
The first step is katai, or cutting. The raw piece is treated with
safed masala (white polish) and the rough edges and tarnish are
smoothed out using an emery paper buffer mounted on a fast-spinning
mechanical axle. Katai is followed by ghotai, where the piece is
first scrubbed with yellow emery paper and white polish, followed by
a fibre brush and red polish. While katai is supposed to remove any
unevenness, it is not a very precise process and leaves broad
scratches on the metal surface. Ghotai, by contrast, is an extremely
precise process that removes any marks or blemishes on the surface to
be polished. The actual polishing, or chamkai, comes only after the
ghotai is complete. Chamkai is carried out using green polish and a
soft green buffer. This process provides the base of the shine, which
is then made into a deep lustre by dhulai (washing the piece with
kerosene) and a final buffing using white polish and a soft buff. The
entire process takes about half an hour apiece, and workers polish
about 20 pieces in a 10-hour day.
A metal polisher takes a break from work.
In his conference paper titled Masculinity, respect and the tragic:
Scenes of proletarian humour in contemporary industrial Delhi,
Shanker Ramaswami points out that the production process has become a
vital part of worker vocabulary. Chamkai, ghotai and dhulai have
become metaphors for day-to-day worker life. "Management toh hamari
dhulai karti hi karti hai," remarks Amalkant, in a reference to the
long hours and strenuous work. Another essential part of worker
vocabulary is hisaab". "While hisaab essentially means settlement, it
implies a whole lot more," explains Surinder Singh. "Hisaab se kaam
karna could mean to work properly and correctly, without cutting
corners or skipping steps. To engage with the task at hand." Hisaab
se kaam could also be used in contexts where the work is dangerous or
demanding - so here hisaab would imply caution. However, the most
common, yet complex, meaning of hisaab se kaam is to work at a
predetermined pace collectively negotiated by the workers.
This particular meaning of hisaab is indicative of the atmosphere on
the shop floor. Contrary to popular imagination, the shop floor is
not the epitome of collective worker action against the management.
While a significant degree of solidarity does exist, the production
rate is a complex negotiation of autonomous speed-ups, slowdowns,
obstruction and facilitation. Workers classify themselves on the
basis of individual relations with the management - chamchas
(management stooges), unionwallahs, mehnatwallahs (hard workers) and
kaamchors (shirkers) come together to produce a fixed number of
pieces each day. Working at a negotiated pace allows all workers the
freedom to devote adequate time and attention to their work and
safety. Chamchas, who over-produce for individual gain, force all
workers to increase their production levels without incentives for
overtime. Kaamchors, who under-produce, give the entire team a bad
name and reduce the bargaining power of workers with the management.
A good worker is one who works in accordance with the many tenets of
hisaab.
For metal polishers with permanent employee status, salaries range
between Rs.2,500 and Rs.3,500 a month. Some factories offer up to
Rs.4,000 a month, depending on the nature of the work. The salary is
considered to be on the higher side in the industrial area, but the
inherent risks and health hazards discourage the workers from
polishing work.
The shop floor.
Most workers at Michael Aram are from nearby villages in Uttar
Pradesh and have families back home. Some stay at nearby jhuggis
(hutments), while others commute from townships such as Faridabad and
Badarpur. Twin rooms cost about Rs.500 a month between two persons.
Rampal claims that at times workers save up to Rs.1,500 a month,
which they send back home.
"Of course, we could use more money," remarks Rampal laconically,
"But, when I first started work in the 1980s as a helper, I earned
Rs.250 a month. What is more important is that the salary comes
regularly and on time."
But wage payments are proving to be a problem at Michael Aram. In
fact, the workers have not been paid since September and the plant
has been idle since March. Michael Aram Exports, the Indian unit for
a United States - based designer, sources raw, unpolished pieces from
local manufacturers, polishes them at its Delhi plant and exports
them to international markets. In early 2005, an intra-management
dispute between Aram and his Indian director (and 30 per cent
shareholder) Francis Joseph, resulted in the closure of two units.
Production ceased and the management declared that workers would get
all their dues once accounts are reopened. But the workers are
getting restive.
Alleging non-payment of wages, the workers have filed a complaint
with the Labour Department. The Delhi State Kamdar Union, affiliated
to the Indian Federation of Trade Unions, has offered its assistance
and is helping with the case. The workers have also embarked on a
series of marches. But, in the meantime, the management has opened a
new factory and offered some workers employment. Workers allege that
work was offered only to certain management chamchas but the manager
of production and shipping S. Jacobs, says that all workers were
offered jobs at the new plant. Whatever the truth may be, the
management has successfully fractured worker unity.
The penultimate stage of metal polishing.
While the unions are gearing up for a prolonged dispute, workers are
conscious that the Labour Department might not rule in their favour.
Unfortunately, workers are simply seen as facilitators of the
production process - to be hired when the need arises, and fired when
possible. "Over the years, the management has become very smart,"
says Rampal, a metal polisher who has not found work at the new
plant. "The traditional strategies of strikes, julus, and protest are
no longer effective. The moment you go on strike, the management
simply effects a lockout and hires contract workers at half the
salary." Workers allege that lower management often goads them into
adopting violent protests that are then used, by the higher
management, as grounds to dismiss them.
Sometimes unions actually weaken worker resistance by centralising
protest strategies. "Often, union leaders arrive at compromises with
the management in order to protect their own positions," says Laxman
Singh, a factory worker in Okhla. "Instead, without a formal union,
the management has no one to negotiate with, and so invariably cracks
under pressure. The management prefers to deal with unions as it is
easier to convince, bribe or intimidate one man."
Amidst of the carefully controlled chaos of Phase I, B-156, the
polishing unit of Michael Aram Exports Pvt. Ltd. is silent; an
aberration along the machine-man continuum. Workers sit in small
groups, chatting softly amongst themselves, pulling on their beedis
and gesturing at a solitary watchman who sits with an attendance
register. "His job is to make sure that we turn up at the factory
every day," explains Naresh Singh, a metal polisher and employee of
the plant, "Production at the plant has stopped, but attendance is
still marked. We show up every day, waiting for the plant to open."
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