RAWALPINDI: Termination of more than 200 employees by a new security company of the Metro Bus Service between Rawalpindi and Islamabad triggered a protest on Monday morning, leading to suspension of bus operations for around two hours.

The Metro Bus Service employees came out onto the metro track in protest against their dismissal and non-payment of salaries for the last two months.

The protesting workers blocked the track, due to which Metro Bus Service between the twin cities remained suspended, causing severe difficulties for students and office-going men and women during peak hours.

For this purpose, all dismissed male and female employees of the Metro Bus Service gathered at the Potohar Metro Bus Station on Monday morning and raised slogans against the Metro administration.

The affected employees claimed that the Metro Bus administration had dismissed more than 200 employees without any prior notice. They said the dismissal process started from May 1 and that they had not been paid salaries for March and April.

The protesters said the Metro Bus Service contract had been awarded to a new company, which terminated the previous employees soon after taking charge and began hiring new staff, while salaries for the old employees remained unpaid.

They added that the employees had not received their dues, and the administration kept giving new dates with various excuses, despite the contract period of the dismissed workers being valid till 2027.

The protesters said many of the dismissed employees had been working with the Metro Bus Service for 8 to 10 years and were often the sole breadwinners for their families.

They appealed to Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz to take immediate notice of the issue and ensure payment of two months’ salaries to the affected employees.

On the other hand, Punjab Mass Transit Authority Rawalpindi-Islamabad Operations Manager Wajid Saleem was not available for comments despite repeated attempts.

A senior PMA official said the bus service was suspended in the morning but was later restored after talks between protesters and the administration.

He said the new security company took charge on May 1 and made decisions regarding its workforce. He added that the PMA administration was working to resolve the issue, and another round of talks between the affected employees and administration was expected on Tuesday.

Published in Dawn, May 19th, 2026