CHENNAI: Workers of Celebrity Fashions in Tambaram staged a protest on Wednesday alleging that the company had decided to discontinue direct transport services to several hometown routes and instead operate buses only up to Chengalpattu, leaving employees to arrange onward travel on their own.
informed that company vehicles would no longer directly serve their routes. Workers say that management instead offered Rs 2,500 towards commuting expenses.
Employees claimed the revised arrangement would force them to get down at Chengalpattu and depend on public transport to reach interior villages and surrounding areas, making daily travel difficult. “These are interior villages that don’t have proper bus facilities. Even now, we struggle to come to work during rain and bad weather. Once schools reopen, it will become impossible to catch buses on time and come to work,” a worker lamented.
Workers said around 35-45 employees travelled in each bus on some routes and claimed the company cited budget constraints for the transport changes.
According to employees, they had arrived at work in company vehicles on Wednesday morning and were told that the day would be the last for the existing transport arrangement. Workers then began protesting outside the facility seeking restoration of direct bus services.
Workers also alleged that no assurance had been given by the management regarding reinstating the earlier transport system. They maintained that they were willing to continue work if transportation arrangements were restored.