Merck KGaA India plant faces partial work stoppage

A Merck KGaA plant in Goa, India, has run into labor issues over wages and is now having to take steps to avoid product shortages.

The German drugmaker notified the Bombay Stock Exchange on Wednesday that “a section of the workforce” at the facility had stopped work while in negotiations with management over issues including pay. The company said it is trying to convince the strikers to return to work and resume negotiations.

Because the company has implemented its “business continuity plans,” it said it didn’t expect any impact on the availability of its products or on its finances.

Strikes in India, while not frequent, occasionally arise. GlaxoSmithKline halted production last year at a consumer health plant in India that makes Horlicks nutritional drink products after workers there unexpectedly went on strike.

In 2014, Pfizer acknowledged it temporarily locked employees out of a plant in Thane, India, after workers reportedly tried to stop production and threatened managers.