With the present contract having expired about five years, the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation has come up with a new salary contract after a long gap of about 11 years. Now, the minimum basic salary will be Rs 23,000, while the maximum will be made Rs 1,05,300. The staff will receive an average increment of about Rs 6,750. Staff of KSRTC will now earn at least Rs 4,700 more, with some getting up to Rs 16,000 more. The new contract to this effect was signed by the chairman and managing director of KSRTC as well as representatives of the employees’ union. The monthly expenditure on salary will now go up to about Rs 100 crore from the existing Rs 84 crore.
Kerala State Road Transport Corporation is also working on reducing the number of for running its long-distance buses. Driver-cum-conductors will be appointed as per the new salary contract system wherein a new rank of drivers will be created, who can play double role.
Starting in June this year, employees will be eligible for new benefits for the next five years.
Promotions will now be granted based on vacancies. Drivers who fulfil a minimum of 20 duties a month will receive Rs 50 per duty. Those who perform over 20 duties will earn Rs 100 per duty. Women staff members can avail a year of leave without pay over an above the 180 days of maternity leave. In addition, these employees will also receive Rs 5,000 per month towards child care. These leaves will be taken into account at the time of promotions, increments and pensions.
The amount of Rs 10,000 given to any employee who loses his or her life in an accident while on duty, has been increased to Rs 50,000. This amount is given to take care of post-death expenses. For deaths due to other causes, a sum of Rs 5,000 will be given instead of the current Rs 2,000.
At least Rs 1,200 will be given as monthly rent allowance. This can go up to Rs 5,000. Among other benefits, employees will be able to enjoy 15 public holidays a year, inclusive of national and state holidays.
