As the protest of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation employees’ unions continues to hamper public transportation in the state, Sharad Pawar, veteran political leader urged them to resume work.
The strike, which has been going on for more than two months, has led the state government to assure the employees that no action would be taken against them once they return to work. The government was compelled by the protesting employees to hike their salaries by 41 per cent, along with a raise in their basic pay.
Pawar pointed out to the workers that even though MSRTC has been going through a financial crisis because of the pandemic, the employees have still been given a pay hike. He assured them that the government was going to take positive measures towards fulfilling the demands of the employees and requested them to return to work immediately.
Regarding their demand to be treated as state government employees, Pawar said MSRTC being a government entity is a matter of sub-judice and the state government will act as per the judgement passed by the court-appointed committee, whatever that may be.
The protest, which began with 96,000 employees of the corporation boycotting work on October 27, 2021, has been one of the most prominent employee strikes in recent history. The workers are demanding a hike in payment and inclusion of the corporation under the ambit of the state government.
