Relief for Mumbaiites; BEST unions suspend strike

Mumbai city news: Workers’ unions of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) said they were calling off their indefinite strike as the BEST management promised to pay them pending salaries on June 22

Commuters can breathe easy. BEST employees called of a strike they had planned from Friday and said buses across the city will run as usual.

If the issue was not resolved, a strike of BEST workers would have spelt chaos on roads — the bus service caters to 30 lakh commuters a day. (File photo)

Workers’ unions of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) said they were calling off their indefinite strike as the BEST management promised to pay them pending salaries on June 22. The unions threatened to strike earlier this week over unpaid salaries. On Tuesday, the management paid 50% of May’s salary to 42,000 employees, but the workers wanted the full amount and gave an ultimatum to best — pay salaries by June 22 or face the protests. The management said they have promised in writing that the remaining 50% salary will be deposited to the workers’ accounts on June 22.

“We received sufficient funds to be able pay the salaries on Thursday without any help from outside,” said Sanjay Bhagwat, acting general manager of BEST.

If the issue was not resolved, a strike of BEST workers would have spelt chaos on roads — the bus service caters to 30 lakh commuters a day. Shashank Rao, leader of BEST Workers’ Union, said he was satisfied with the assurance but was against paying salary in phases. “BMC should pay salary on time,” Rao said.