Employees of the Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking will be receiving the highest ever bonus ahead of Diwali this year.
On Wednesday, Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar announced Diwali 'Sanugraha' bonus of Rs 10,100 for each BEST employee ahead of Diwali, irrespective of their designation. Last year, the workers received a bonus amount worth Rs 9,100.
"This is the highest ever bonus amount proposed for the BEST workers. Earlier the bonus used to be calculated as per the base salary, now everyone gets a common amount," BEST spokesperson Manoj Varade told FPJ.
Amid the lock down imposed to contain the pandemic outbreak in March, workers of the BEST undertaking remained instrumental in getting the medical staffers and emergency service providers moving. Last week, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had announced a bonus worth Rs 15,500 for its employees following which workers of BEST demanded equal bonus at par with BMC employees.
BEST worker union leaders and members of the management committee had also met city Mayor Kishori Pednekar and CM Uddhav Thackeray to highlight the issue.
"BMC has allotted a grant of Rs 36 crores to BEST for paying bonus to its 35,000 employees. A meeting was held among CM Thackeray, Mayor Kishori Pednekar and BEST GM Surendrakumar Bagde on Tuesday where the call was taken," BEST chairman Praveen Shinde told FPJ.
"BEST workers have been on duty since the pandemic broke out, all of them had risked their lives and many got infected in the line of duty, they deserve to be paid an equal amount," stated JM Kahar, secretary BEST Kamgaar Sangathana.
