Bangalore:Sept 12 (DHNS) :  Employees of the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) are likely to go on an indefinite strike from September 13 as the impasse between them and the State Transport department continued even on Tuesday.

Members of the Karnataka State Transport Corporation Employees Joint Committee said the management of the corporation has violated an earlier agreement between the committee and the government on fixing pay scale for the staff.

“We have been cheated and have no other go but to resort to indefinite strike. Our aim is not to cause inconvenience to the public. But we appeal to the people to understand our pain and the injustice we are suffering,” said B Jayadevaraje Urs, the convener of the joint committee.

If the management and the employees do not arrive at a consensus on Wednesday, bus services across the State will be affected. Manjunath Prasad, KSRTC Managing Director, however, said the talks with the employees were on and he was confident of resolving the problem.

The unions said that when they threatened to go on strike on April 27 this year, the government promised that it would address their grievances. But it didn’t keep it’s word. There is no dialogue between the employees and the management since 1996 and the employees are given a very meagre hike every year, which is far less than the profit the corporation earns every year, the unions said.

The All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) has extended its support to the KSRTC employees stir and has urged the State government to fulfill their demands.

However, the Association of Transport Corporation Workers and Retired Workers has decided not to support the strike as it would cause inconvenience to public.
“Demands can be fulfilled by holding regular talks with the management,” said Jai Shankar Reddy N V, vice president of the association.