RTC staff dangles stir threat over pay dues

RTC staff dangles stir threat over pay dues
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Highlights

Nonpayment of arrears to employees by the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) management appears to be leading to unrest among workers. Unions have threatened to issue strike notice if the management fails to release their dues immediately.

Unrest brewing among RTC employees over the TSRTC management's failure to release their dues

Hyderabad: Nonpayment of arrears to employees by the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) management appears to be leading to unrest among workers. Unions have threatened to issue strike notice if the management fails to release their dues immediately.

The RTC management has to pay second term arrears, dearness allowance, leave encashment and settlement of dues of retired employees which is to the tune of over Rs 300 crore.

According to workers’ union leaders, the RTC management is not even releasing earned leave (EL) dues pertaining to the period between 2012 and 2015. The second term arrears of 2014 pay revision of Rs 150 crore (16.66 per cent), which was to be given to them before Ugadi are also due.

Similarly, the settlement dues of retired employees to the tune of Rs 120 crore are also pending. A workers’ union leader said many had planned for their children’s higher education and some of them had planned for their marriage but most of them are left worried because of the delay in the payments.

The employees had entered into an agreement with the management during May 2015 for payment of their arrears in phases. However, the management failed to implement the decision. The management now says that it can pay the dues only after the state government releases funds.

The unions are annoyed that the management was not releasing their hard earned money of earned leave. “Some of the workers have not taken the leave in the hope that they can save some money. Now, they feel cheated as they are denied their rightful share of money,” said a union leader.

Aggrieved workers are now planning to take up protest programmes including issuing strike notice. Employees’ Union president S Babu said they had entered into an agreement with the management through which it had decided to pay the second phase of arrears before Ugadi festival. He alleged that now the management said that it could pay only if it got funds from the government.

Union general secretary
K Raji Reddy said the management had assured to provide 50 per cent pay scale arrears in the form of bonds but it was yet to issue those bonds. The union leaders have decided to work by wearing black badges on April 12 and to serve strike notice on April 18.

The union leaders point out that the Chief Minister had promised to provide Rs 75 crore to RTC every month but the officials were yet to respond. The government owed Rs 375 crore to RTC and if it could pay the dues, the workers could get their money, added the union leader.

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