Even as an indefinite strike by the employees of the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) demanding implementation of 6th Pay Commission entered the seventh day only a few workers turned up for duty.
Official sources said that majority of 1.37 lakh defiant workers stayed away from work, few RTC employees joined the duty amid “no work no pay” threat.
Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa in a strong message ruled out any talks with the employees on the issue of implementing the sixth pay commission on par with government employees and warned strict action.
The KSRTC said in a statement: “We have 3000 buses from across the state on intra-state and inter-state routes during the day with some employees reporting for duty.”
“Salary for March will be given on Monday to those employees returning to work despite a threat by their striking colleagues,” added the official.
The four state-owned transport corporations that have gone on strike seeking salaries on par with the state government employees are: Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC), North-East Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NEKRTC), North West Road Transport Corporation (NWRTC) and Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC).
These four corporations run a fleet of 26,000 buses
The deadlock between corporations and the government has led to inconvenience to commuters, especially those who wanted to travel to their native place for celebrating Ugadi on Tuesday.
The authorities have roped in maxi cabs, private buses, mini-buses, and other passenger transport vehicles to handle the crisis and help commuters.
