Clearance of 26 months' arrears: Road Transport Corporation staff hold stir in Bengaluru

Bengaluru: Thousands of Road Transport Corporation (RTC) employees went ahead with a protest on Thursday, a day after the government announced it would clear 26 months' arrears and hold talks on a pay hike from Apr 1, 2025. 

While bus operations remained unaffected, RTC workers from across Karnataka participated in the 'Bengaluru Chalo' protest at Freedom Park. 

The protest was called by the Joint Action Committee of the Trade Unions of KSRTC, demanding payment of Rs 1,785 crore as arrears for 38 months (Jan 1, 2020, to Feb 28, 2023) and a 25% pay hike from Jan 1, 2024. 

The government had earlier implemented a 15% hike for 1.1 lakh RTC employees from Mar 1, 2023, and assured of clearing arrears for 38 months before that.

But, based on the M R Sreenivasa Murthy committee report, it later agreed to clear arrears for only 14 months. It promised fresh hike from Apr 1, 2026, instead of Apr 1, 2024, as the unions demanded.

Revising its stance on Wednesday, the government issued an order to clear arrears for another 12 months (Jan 1 to Dec 31, 2021) and advanced new hike to April 1, 2025.

The committee said both demands — 38 months' arrears and pay hike from April 1, 2024 — were non-negotiable.

D A Vijaya Bhaskar, general secretary, KSRTC Staff and Workers' Federation, which is part of the committee said: "We have decided to defer the agitation to Mar 2." 

KSRTC MD Akram Pasha visited the protest venue and urged the employees to call it off, citing revised offer. 

Pasha told DH that since the last hike took effect from Mar 1, 2023, next revision was technically due only after 4 years (in 2027), but government advanced it to 2025. 

Bhaskar said: "All we're asking for is to be a part of the decision-making process. The KSRTC MD must call a meeting to discuss wage hike percentage. If that's done, then we will call off the agitation." 

Pasha said the meeting would be called after consultations with transport minister.