Support the Union Struggle against Bogus Factory Sale and Illegal Closure at Unilever India Since July of last year, the Hindustan Lever Employees Union (HLEU), a member of the IUF-affiliated All India Council of Unilever Unions (AICUU) has been struggling against the fraudulent sale and closure of the Hindustan Lever Mumbai (Bombay) factory which manufactures soaps, toothpaste and shampoos. In July 2005 Unilever’s subsidiary in India, Hindustan Lever, sold the factory to a company called Bon Limited. Two months later Bon Limited made an application to the Government to close the factory and retrench over 900 members of HLEU. The sale of the Bombay factory by Hindustan Lever was financed through a loan of USD2.17 million by Hindustan Lever to Bon Limited. The purchase price was 1.8 million. At the time of the purchase, Bon Limited had a capitalization of only USD10,800! The fraudulent transfer of ownership from Hindustan Lever to Bon Limited - which is the subject of a criminal complaint filed by HLEU - is an attempt by the Unilever management to break the union’s collective bargaining power and transfer production to areas where there are greater tax concessions. The union has been fighting back on all fronts - industrial, legal and political - and has requested international support. You can support their struggle by sending a message to Unilever, to Hindustan Lever and to the state authorities to demand that Unilever abide by the court decision to halt the closure and to insist that the future of the plant be negotiated with the union in good faith and with full respect for the law. To participate in other IUF campaigns, please click here. Date updated : 13-Sep-2006 Language : en Status: closed