Metro Rail Staff Announce Complete Service Halt from Friday

Dhaka’s Metro Rail services are set to face a significant disruption as regular staff of the Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) have declared a total strike and suspension of all passenger services starting 7:00 am on Friday, 12 December. The announcement follows the failure of the DMTCL management to finalise and publish a comprehensive service and employment rule despite repeated ultimatums. Staff have also vowed to maintain a peaceful sit-in outside the DMTCL headquarters during the strike period.

Background: Long-Standing Grievances

Established in 2013, DMTCL now employs over 900 officers and staff, yet it has not finalised a separate employment regulation for its personnel, even after twelve years of operation. Since the commencement of commercial metro services on 28 December 2022, staff recruited through open vacancies have carried out day-and-night duties. However, they claim to have been denied fundamental benefits including leave, CPF, gratuity, shift allowances, overtime pay, and group insurance.

Despite instructions from the advisory committee in September 2024 to finalise the service rules within 60 working days, no progress was made. Following employee protests in February 2025, management promised completion by 20 March, yet delays continued, leading to mounting frustration among staff.

The Issue of the ‘Special Provision’

During a meeting on 10 December, DMTCL Managing Director informed staff that while the board agreed on all provisions of the service rules, Chapter 11 concerning ‘special provisions’ remained unresolved. This clause relates to the integration of project personnel into DMTCL, which employees argue conflicts with national laws and Supreme Court rulings. Staff further allege that while the board is willing to remove the contentious clause, pressure from DMTCL authorities has delayed the rule’s publication.

Strike and Sit-In Plans

With the deadline passed, employees declared that if service rules were not published by 11 December, they would commence total work stoppage from 7:00 am on 12 December. While the strike is expected to affect hundreds of thousands of daily commuters, employees stress that the responsibility for disruption lies solely with DMTCL management.

Alongside the strike, staff will maintain daily peaceful sit-ins at the DMTCL headquarters to press their demands. Their message is clear: without formal service rules, no assurance of career progression, salaries, or entitlements is guaranteed, and no verbal assurances can substitute for officially published regulations.

The impending halt highlights the urgent need for DMTCL to resolve long-standing administrative and labour issues, balancing employee rights with uninterrupted public service.