No salary for MTC staff, indefinite stir to continue

SHILLONG: More than 200 employees of the Meghalaya Transport Corporation began an indefinite pen-down strike on Wednesday after the State Government failed to release five months’ salary before Christmas and equate their gratuity benefits with other government employees.
The protesters, under the banner Meghalaya Transport Corporation Workers’ Union (MTCWU), threw MTC out of gears as most of the employees did not attend office.
The general secretary of the workers’ union, K Rumnong, said Rs 3.5 crore is yet to be released by the Government and “250-odd employees are living in hardship”.
MTC requires around Rs 70 lakh per month for payment of salaries.
Rumnong said despite the corporation’s proposal to release a subsidy of Rs 1.80 crore for clearing the pending salaries in installments, the State Government has so far released only Rs 90 lakh, which is not enough for the employees to get even two months’ salaries.
Stating that the strike has been called after the corporation’s managing director, A. Nikhla, refused to release even two months’ salary before Christmas, Rumnong said the strike will continue till MTC releases two months’ salary to all employees.
Meanwhile, the employees are also opposing the move of the incumbent MD to change the payment of death-cum-retirement gratuity saying they oppose the move as they we are a semi-government organisation and they don’t get pension like those working in State government offices.