Samsung defends Indian wages as strike at plant enters third week

Samsung Electronics workers at a factory in India's Tamil Nadu state are paid almost twice as much as employees in nearby companies, the South Korean group said on Tuesday, as a strike at the plant enters its third week.

More than 1,000 workers have disrupted operations and protested in a makeshift tent close to Samsung's home appliances factory near the city of Chennai since September 9.

They are demanding higher wages and union recognition at the plant, which contributes roughly a third of Samsung's annual revenue in India of $12 billion.

Commenting on wages for the first time, Samsung said in a statement: "The average monthly salary of our full-time manufacturing workers at the Chennai plant is 1.8 times the average salary of similar workers employed at other companies in the region."

The Samsung factory is next to units of global giants such as Foxconn and Dell in an area popular for automobile and electronics manufacturing.

"Our workers are also eligible for overtime pay and other allowances and we provide a workplace environment that assures the highest standards of health, safety and welfare," Samsung said, adding it was ready to engage with workers to address their grievances so they can return to work as soon as possible.

The protests cast a shadow over Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's drive for more foreign investors to "Make in India" and to triple electronics production to $500 billion in six years. It is the biggest such strike in India in recent years.

Veera Raghava Rao, Tamil Nadu's labour secretary, said on Tuesday efforts were ongoing to resolve the dispute.

According to labour group CITU, which is leading the strike, Samsung workers earn 25,000 rupees ($300) on average per month, and are demanding a further 36,000 rupees ($430) per month over three years.