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eridani

(51,907 posts)
Tue Jun 17, 2014, 04:16 AM Jun 2014

Indian Factory Workers Kill CEO

Sometimes I wonder if it will ever come to that here. Pushing for higher minimum wages is a much more peaceful alternative.

http://www.manufacturing.net/news/2014/06/police-indian-factory-workers-kill-ceo?et_cid=3998319&et_rid=54679148&location=top

KOLKATA, India (AP) -- An angry mob of Indian workers wielding iron rods and stones beat the CEO of a jute factory to death in a dispute over increasing their working hours, police said Monday after arresting six workers.

The suspects — two detained Monday and four on Sunday — are expected to be charged with murder, vandalism and other crimes allegedly committed when the mob of about 200 workers stormed the office of 60-year-old H.K. Maheswari in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal, according to Hooghly District Police Superintendent Sunil Chowdhury.

Maheswari had denied their earlier request to work and be paid for 40 hours a week at the North Brook Jute Mill, instead of the current norm of 25. He had also proposed shutting down the mill for three days a week to limit mounting financial losses, according to the factory's general manager, Kiranjit Singh.

"The mill workers suddenly resorted to stone pelting while we were busy in a meeting," Kiranjit Singh said. At one point during Sunday's meeting, Maheswari looked out the window at the growing crowd and was struck in the head by two stones. He collapsed, at which point a large group of workers stormed the office, Singh said.

"The CEO was thrashed with iron rods, and he succumbed to his injuries very soon," Singh said. Both the general manager and a security guard were hospitalized for injuries and later released, while Maheswari died on the way to a hospital, police said.

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JI7

(89,182 posts)
2. need more info, if it was just over not getting orders and making money what could they do ?
Tue Jun 17, 2014, 04:37 AM
Jun 2014

why don't these thugs campaign for things like minimum wage and unemployment in case the business does close down ?

so far everything i read seems like they were paid above the industry average and it was only because of slow business that hours were being cut.

i can't sympathize with the workers in this case.

onethatcares

(16,133 posts)
6. I wonder what the pay ratio was
Tue Jun 17, 2014, 05:28 AM
Jun 2014

CEO to worker.

I don't think I've ever seen a place that went with all part time employees while the executives made a bundle. But then again, I don't get around very much anymore.

These mill workers should have formed a union, that's the ticket. I'm certain the managers would have been glad to deal in good faith with them and their reps.

Or the workers could have applied for safety net benefits, like food stamps etc. India is big on those.

Or they could have written their elected representatives. That usually works.

btw, alot of the above is sarcasm. I wonder how many times the factory owners used the police to bust heads.

I think this shows what happens when people are pushed too far. At least the police chief assured business leaders that "union" violence would not be tolerated.

JI7

(89,182 posts)
7. these were union workers, the only thing this case shows is they were thugs
Tue Jun 17, 2014, 05:33 AM
Jun 2014

there was no issue with worker abuse or other labor violations.

the only problem was that business was slow so hours were being cut.

onethatcares

(16,133 posts)
9. in that vein
Tue Jun 17, 2014, 07:05 AM
Jun 2014

JP Morgan and J.P. Morgan were thugs. The only difference would be the methodology used to kill striking union workers.

They call those guys, "Captains of Industry"

mattclearing

(10,091 posts)
8. More temps got killed working for Amazon than this in the past 6 months.
Tue Jun 17, 2014, 05:33 AM
Jun 2014

While this is pretty horrible, death by angry mob *is* a work-related hazard for the thrifty CEO.

JI7

(89,182 posts)
11. these people were paid above industry average , there was no labor violations or worker abuse
Tue Jun 17, 2014, 03:14 PM
Jun 2014

the business just wasn't selling much so could not afford to keep employees on the job so they cut down the hours.

there was no excuse for it an it's stupid to compare it to actual cases of abuse.

mattclearing

(10,091 posts)
13. I said it was pretty horrible.
Tue Jun 17, 2014, 04:44 PM
Jun 2014

In general, I'd say CEO's are the least aggrieved class of employed people in the world.

There's no excuse for violence, but it's hard for me to work up much sympathy for executives who can't make a profit from part-time workforces and continue to try to do business.

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