Bus service across the state is anticipated to be affected by the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) Staff and Workers Federation's decision to embark on an indefinite strike beginning on March 21 in order to seek, among other things, a wage raise.
On Tuesday, the federation of the workers' unions at the BMTC, KSRTC, NWKRTC, and KKRTC announced an indefinite strike and sent a letter to chief minister Basavaraj Bommai outlining their demands, which they said had not been met.
“Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and Transport Minister B Sriramulu had promised to address all of our requests in prior meetings. Yet, our requests have not yet been satisfied, according to the federation's president, HV Anantha Subbarao.
“CM Bommai recently issued an order to raise the wage by 17% as a temporary respite after government workers challenged the pay rise. They haven't been listening despite the fact that we have been protesting for so long. We have rejected their offer to raise our pay by merely 10%, Subbarao said.
Their requests include raising the revised basic salary by 25% and combining the dearness allowance with the basic wage. Moreover, they have asked that the yearly raise equal 3% of the updated base salary.
Along with unconditional reinstatement for all workers who participated in the April 2021 strike, other demands include grade promotion every ten years of service, a five-fold increase in all allowances paid to bus drivers, conductors, and technical and administrative staff, and removal of their names from the FIRs.
Almost 1,000 members of the KSRTC Workers' Koota, which represents over 15,000 workers, demonstrated in Bengaluru's Freedom Park last month with a list of demands that included a wage hike.
“KSRTC personnel are paid far less than those employed by other government agencies. According to Chandrashekar, state president of the KSRTC Workers' Koota, the discrepancy ranges from 19% to 65% for various personnel.
On March 24, the KSRTC Workers' Koota announced an indefinite strike in protest of the failure of the 6th Pay Commission to implement its recommendations for employees.
Passengers, particularly those who have booked bookings, may experience inconvenience as a result of the protest, which is scheduled before of the state's Ugadi celebration.
