Hundreds of workers at Classic Knitwear in Madagascar are said to be fighting against arbitrary technical unemployment – an enforced three-month unpaid leave imposed by the company, during which a worker cannot change employer.

The company, based in the country’s capital Antananarivo, blames a reduction in orders for the decision.

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The dispute began on 11 December last year, when 263 workers were told they were on leave for 30 days followed by technical unemployment from 8 January to 5 March 2018.

Classic Knitwear is represented by the IndustriAll Global Union affiliate Syndicalisme et Vie des Sociétés (SVS), which says the national labour inspectorate approved the company’s decision without a proper investigation of the causes of the situation.

The move means workers will remain in an unconfirmed status for at least 30 days and will then face a “zero contract” situation for at least another two months, during which time they will have no income and will be unable to search for a new job.

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With the employer refusing to pay for leave or unemployment, the workers have tried – unsuccessfully – to resolve the issue through labour reconciliation.

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As a result, they have gone on indefinite strike. They are calling for payment of the remaining part of their salary, including leave allocation and a non-refundable safety monthly payment equal to MGA200,000 (US$62) and the guarantee of a return to work on 5 March 2018; or an end to their contracts with all due payments.

The SVS union is urging government representatives, namely the labour inspectorate and minister of labour, step in to settle the problem.