RAWALPINDI:
Employees of the bus service plying between the twin cities called off a 48-hour strike after their demands for payment of wages were met. The demands included release of four moths unpaid salaries in one go, future payment of salaries on fixed date, reimbursement of 15% salary deducted during lockdown and that the management will take no action against the protesting employees.
The Metro Bus service suspended since Thursday will be back on tracks from Saturday, officials of the Metro Bus Authority (MBA) told the media. The ticketing employees had gone on strike after not receiving their salaries for four months. However, the employees who ended the strike have also announced to go on strike again in case of non-compliance with the demands.
The strike observed by the Metro Bus ticketing staff had entered the second day in the twin cities on Friday. The protesters staged a sit-in on the IJP Road Metro Station, leaving the red bus service suspended, and travellers in sheer trouble. MBA officials told The Express Tribune that loss of revenue caused due to suspended bus services has exceeded Rs50,00,000. Daily, 135,000 travellers in both the cities use the economical and quality metro bus services for daily commute, they said.
The employees staged a sit-in on the metro track, chanted slogans, and demanded the payment of salaries. In view of the prevalent situation, the assistant commissioner industrial area Islamabad Moosa Tahir visited the metro track. Both parties failed to reach a negotiation. Speaking to the media on the occasion, the assistant commissioner shared that there is a dispute over salaries, and they are in talks with the metro bus authority and a third party.
The issue is likely to be resolved soon amid the prevalent coronavirus situations. He said that the metro bus service will be resumed today. The employees deserve to be paid, however, there are a few technical glitches that will be resolved soon, the commissioner shared. Meanwhile, the protesters continued to observe sit-in over failure to reach a negotiation and presented 8-point written demands to the authorities. They demanded payment of three-month salaries in one shot payment and fixing a day for disbursing salaries.
They maintained that the company representatives should assure payment of salaries in the future. They further demanded payment of 15% salaries, deducted amid the coronavirus induced lockdown. One-shot payment of the gratuity to the ex-employees and those serving the notice period was also a demand put forth.
The protesters also demanded assurance that no legal actions will be taken against them, or else, they will resume back to strike. They also put forth the demand for a raise in salaries by 20% and immediate promotion of the deserving candidates, with the issuance of the letter within a week. The protesters maintained that they will continue to keep the metro bus service suspended and observe sit-in until their demands are met.
