DA hike: ₹30,000 minimum wage, higher pension, job security — Full list of BMS’ demands ahead of 17 August strike
The Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) has raised a number of demands before the Centre ahead of its protests scheduled nationwide on 17 August, the central trade union’s national vice president and media in-charge Pawan Kumar said. In Delhi, the RSS-affiliated union’s protest will be held at Jantar Mantar, as per a PTI report.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Kumar said that key demands include a minimum monthly wage of ₹30,000 for unskilled workers, job security for contract workers, higher pensions and increased wage ceilings for employees’ provident fund (EPF) and employees’ insurance (ESI), it added.
Why are protests called?
Kumar said the government has promised to address the trade unions’ concerns regarding the labour codes on 21 November 2025, but the concerns remain unresolved. He told PTI that the BMS held its national executive meeting in Ranchi between 26-28 July with 173 of the 180 members in attendance. He said that a consensus was reached to hold demonstrations on 17 August to press for demands.
The organisation will assess its strength after the protests before deciding its next course of action, he added.
According to Kumar, while the government cites financial burden as hindrance to increasing pension, he argued that the issue needs to be examined in the context of the corpus available under the pension system. “Today, more than ₹3 lakh crore is deposited in EPF pension. This is the pensioner’s money,” he said.
Kumar said the BMS believes interest on the corpus can help improve pension payouts.
He also added that the existing EPF ceiling is increasingly out of sync with prevailing minimum wages. “Delhi’s minimum wage has now become ₹18,000 to ₹23,000 for unskilled workers,” he stated.
(With inputs from Agencies)
