VELLORE: Nearly 150 workers of RSL Sethu Company, a tannery closed down 13 years ago, occupied eight acres of the erstwhile company’s land at Karugampathur on the outskirts of Vellore on Monday, demanding compensation. The workers leveled the land using earthmovers and put up thatched huts and said they would move with their families and live there until they receive the compensation.
In response, the management of the company has invited the workers for talks. The workers claimed the management of the company had closed the company without explanation or prior notice in 2002 leaving workers and their families in distress. Workers had filed a case in the court and have been waging a legal battle ever since.
“The Vellore Court passed a verdict in 2010 in favour of the workers. The court directed the management of the company to settle the compensation amount between Rs 5 lakh and Rs 8 lakh to each of the 150 permanent workers of the company,” said 42-year-old R Boopalan, who was employed for 13 years in the defunct company. Though the court passed the verdict four years ago, the workers claim that management of the company has not adhered to the verdict.
It may be recalled that on October 16, a group of workers of the company had attempted a suicide bid near the District Combined Courts Complex, to draw attention to their demands. However, the police had arrested the protestors and they were let off with a warning.