Employees of companies linked to Metro Bus Service in Rawalpindi and Islamabad staged a strong protest alleging that they were not being paid salaries and were being removed from jobs unjustly.

The protest was held from IJP Road station to Potohar station where the workers parked the Metro buses on the track and blocked the service for hours. This meant that many passengers had serious problems to travel.

Employees of both sexes took part in the protest. The workers carried placards demanding for the payment of outstanding salaries and the re-instatement of sacked workers to their jobs.

When a new company took over the Metro Bus contract, around 150 to 200 workers were removed without proper notice, the protesters said. Some workers said they were told they could not keep working because of age restrictions, while others reported that the system would no longer accept workers over 40 years old.

The workers asked why experienced employees were being let go when there were already many older workers on the service.

The protesters also said salaries for March, April and May had not been paid. Two months’ wages were said to be owed to some of the dismissed employees.

New workers were brought in to replace eight- to ten-year employees, whose contracts are valid until 2027. They said this was unfair and violated the agreement.

The protesters have been demanding a monthly salary of Rs 40,000, timely salary payments, leave benefits and an end to unnecessary deductions and penalties. They also said that they were paid Rs37,000 after deductions, even though the salary slips showed Rs42,000.

The Metro Bus service continued to remain suspended during the protest which caused inconvenience for the daily commuters in the twin cities.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)