Workers score 20% pay rise at Bhat Bhateni, Nepal’s largest supermarket chain

The Bhat-Bhateni chapter of UNI Global Union affiliate, the All-Nepal Shop and Sales Workers Union (ANSSWU), has successfully finalized and signed a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) which locked in a pay raise for 4,500 employees, nearly all women, at Bhat-Bhateni, Nepal’s biggest supermarket chain. 

The new agreement between the union and the Bhat-Bhateni management ensures a notable 20 per cent salary increase, equivalent to NPR 3,000 (USD22) per month, for all staff members. This exceeds the increase in the new minimum wage notice issued by the government last August 2023. The agreement also committed Bhat-Bhateni’s management to complete the enrolment of all employees in the contributory social security fund, thereby ensuring long-term financial security for its workforce.

Sister Meena Poudel, President of the All Nepal Bhat Bhateni Employees Union (ANBBEU) credited her CBA negotiating team, and said, “I am very proud of what they accomplished which could not happen without the CBA and leadership training supported by UNI Nepal Liaison Council (UNI NLC) and SASK.”

The union received support as part of a four-year UNI Asia & Pacific project funded by Finnish trade union solidarity centre, SASK, in partnership with UNI’s Finnish affiliates PAM and PRO. The programme, which runs until the end of 2025, seeks to strengthen decent work for commerce sector workers in Nepal. 

Sister Sharmila Tamang, one of the union’s CBA team members, said, “The training I received through the workshops helped gave me the skills and confidence to articulate and voice our demands effectively with the management.”

ANSSWU President Mr Bheshraj Dahal commended Bhat-Bhateni’s dedication to fair wages and social security for its employees and complimented the ANBBEU, saying, “I am very pleased with the Bhat Bhateni Union for achieving the agreement in a manner that sets a positive example for industrial relations and workers’ rights in Nepal.”

Rajendra Acharya, Regional Secretary of UNI Asia & Pacific, congratulated the ANBBEU and said, “This is a wonderful achievement which highlighted the significance and importance of the union’s presence in the workplace and its essential role for collective bargaining and maintaining smooth industrial relations. Congratulations!”

Established in 1984, Bhat-Bhateni Supermarket is spread across 27 locations in Nepal and helps create jobs indirectly for around 50,000 people.