Family members, including a few children, joined the striking TNSTC staff during a demonstration in front of the transport divisional office at Kaundampalayam, seeking wage revision and arrears as the strike entered the sixth day today.

A large number of women, some holding tiny tots, and children, raised slogans in support of their demands, along with the over staff, police said.

As a precautionary measure, adequate police were deployed near the venue.

Meanwhile, some 20 to 50 per cent buses plied on specific routes in the city, putting commuters to hardship, amidst complaints that private buses were overcharging.

The staff were agitated over the reports of arrest of four union leaders in Salem in the early hours of the day. However, the arrested were released after some time, police said.

Majority of the buses were off the road in nearby Tirupur and Nilgiris.