HYDERABAD: Non-remittance of salary for the month of September even till October 9 has become a cause for worry for over 48,000 striking RTC employees. The employees have alleged that none of them received their salaries for the previous month, despite having reported on duty till October 5.
The employees are predominantly drivers, conductors, apprentices, cleaners, and administrative and clerical staff. Only the drivers and conductors make up about 45,000 of the striking employees, all of whom earn within Rs 50,000, depending on various experience levels.
However, none of them have received their salary. “We used to always get salary by 1st of the month. But this month salaries have not been remitted,” noted N Ravi Kumar, a conductor with the RTC.
“Many of our workers have slept on an empty stomach unable to even prepare a celebratory meal due to these tactics,” said M Thomas Reddy, working president of the Telangana Mazdoor Union.
Echoing similar thoughts, a bus driver showed his last payslip from the month of August. “I have taken loans for my children’s education. We give about Rs 10,000 to EMI deductions every month. I barely have Rs 20,000 left with me to feed a family of four. With salaries delayed, I don’t know how much more we can make it work,” the driver lamented.
The employees further pointed out that the government was also flouting the law when it removed the striking employees without offering them to serve notice periods or provide them with a transition package. “We are staring at a bleak future. It has happened so suddenly that we fear we may never get our jobs back. This is all I have done for the last 15 years. What will I do now,’ rued a conductor at an RTC protest.
However, officials from TSRTC management noted that salaries of all, including senior management, have been delayed due to the poor financial health of the corporation, and the losses incurred by the strike. Salaries according will come in by October 12, they said.