BEST workers' union agrees to call off Mumbai bus strike, accepts management's '10-step increment plan'

In a major relief to lakhs of commuters in Mumbai, the workers’ union of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking (BEST) agreed to withdraw their strike on Wednesday.

The development came when the union informed the Bombay High Court that it has agreed to ‘10-step increment’ proposal offered by BEST management to end the stalemate. The high court also said that a retired high court judge will be appointed to act as a mediator to resolve other concerns of the employees.

#NewsAlert -- BEST strike: Union workers agree to withdraw strike before Bombay HC. | @radhika1705 with more details pic.twitter.com/M5OmmdcZH6

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A state appointed high-powered committee had earlier this week suggested that the BEST employees’ salary be hiked in 10 steps as an interim measure. However, BEST workers’ union leader Shashank Rao had  rejected the proposal  on Tuesday as the union demanded the merging of BEST and BMC budgets.

On Wednesday, the counsel of BEST workers’ union Neeta Karnik said the proposal was agreeable to employees but they want an independent mediator to resolve the issues. “We cannot sit with BEST. We want an independent mediator who has knowledge of labour laws…we want a retired high court judge to be appointed as mediator,” Karnik said.

A division bench of Chief Justice NH Patil and Justice NM Jamdar agreed to this and directed the parties to suggest names. “The mediator shall within a period of three months discuss demands put forth by the employees, like 20-step pay hike, merger of BEST and BMC budgets, and so on,” the court said in its order.

The BEST union and its management agreed to have retired high court justice FI Rebello as the mediator.

After the court dictated its order, Karnik made a statement before the bench that the strike will be called off by Wednesday afternoon.

The court noted that the first step was to ensure the strike was called-off. “The strike should not have happened at all. The situation should not have been brought to this extent. The BEST and Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) should show more consideration towards the BEST workers. It is not easy for families to survive with low salaries,” Chief Justice Patil said.

To the workers, he said, “No employee will ever say he or she is satisfied with their job and salary. But we are all part of a system that needs to continue functioning.”

Mumbai Mirror reported that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will provide the infrastructure for mediation. As per the BEST workers’ union and BMC’s previous submissions in court, a ‘one-step’ increase in pay for BEST workers amounts to around Rs 330 per month.

The strike — the longest such protest in the history of the BEST — entered its ninth day on Wednesday with over 32,000 BEST employees being supporting the stir since 8 January. The workers had pressed for various demands, including pay hike, revision of pay grade for junior level employees, and merger of loss-making BEST’s budget with that of the BMC.

Since last week, the high court had been hearing a PIL filed by lawyer Datta Mane urging the court to pass interim orders directing BEST workers to call off the strike immediately.

The state government had last week invoked the Maharashtra Essential Services Maintenance Act (MESMA) against the striking employees.

The BEST has a fleet of over 3,200 buses which criss-cross the metropolis and also operate services in the neighbouring Thane district and Navi Mumbai. It is the second-biggest mode of transport in Mumbai after local trains, which ferry over 80 lakh passengers every day.

With inputs from agencies