Pfizer shutdown at Chennai, Aurangabad: Employees offered Severance Package

Chennai: While shutting down plants at two major cities in the country, drug maker Pfizer is now trying to strike a deal with its 1700 employees at these units to reach an amicable settlement.

As promised in a communication to its 1700 current employees in Chennai and Aurangabad units, the pharmaceutical entity, Pfizer has come up with financial package wherein wages based on years of service and an unwilling retirement payout of Rs 7 lakh each to its employees has been offered.

Medical Dialogues had recently reported that nearly thousand plus employees were in a lurch after the company announced the shutdown of Chennai and Aurangabad units citing non-viability.

The recommendation to exit both the sites are the result of significant loss of product demand, making manufacturing at these sites unviable, the company said. The company's Irungattukottai unit in Tamil Nadu currently employs approximately 1,000 workers and Maharashtra's Aurangabad site employs approximately 700. The exact timing of the exit of these sites is yet to be determined, the firm said.

However, the recent offer has put the company's employees to ease, according to recent media reports. "An attractive financial scheme that is significantly higher than the legal requirements has been offered to Pfizer colleagues. We are not able to provide additional details at this point," a Pfizer spokesperson told Business Standard

As reviewed by the daily, the details of the package revealed that the employees will be paid 75 days of wages for every year of service with the company, on rounding off, subject to a minimum of six months' pay. Besides, the notice pay, leave encashment, statutory bonus and gratuity will be paid. An 'early bird' incentive of Rs 7 lakh, with a group participation incentive, has also been offered.

In addition to this, the statutory benefits would be given. Further, a compensation of 15 days' wages for every completed year of service and some more will be offered, according to the document.

It is further reported that January 14^th onwards, the employees may collect their personal belongings from the work site, based on scheduled group appointments.

The Chennai and Aurangabad units are entirely export-oriented and do not supply products for Pfizer's India commercial operations.

The Chennai and Aurangabad facility produced beta-lactam antibiotics and penicillin and penem API respectively. Pfizer bought the plants from Orchid Pharma which is presently bankrupt.

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