Teachers on daily wages unpaid for five months

On March 17, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar had approved in principle the release of the daily-wagers salary

ISLAMABAD: The new academic session commences today (Monday) after spring vacations but little Umair is without a new uniform, books, copies and bag. His mother could not buy him anything for the new class due to non-payment of her salary since last November

Umair’s mother is a daily wage teacher who like many other families, solely depend on their salaries for survival and these teachers are facing extreme financial difficulties because of non-payment to the teaching and non-teaching staffers of schools and colleges.

On March 17, during a meeting with Capital Administration and Development Division (CADD) Minister Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, Federal Finance Minister Ishaq Dar had approved in principle the release of the daily-wagers salary.

But there has been no development since the announcement, the teachers say, and the announcement was just for media consumption.

The teachers and non-teachers both are in heavy debt and running their day to day affairs by borrowing, said a teacher Rabia Waheed, adding ‘I pay my cab fare daily to go to school by borrowing money”.

The daily wage staffers at educational institutions also went on strike on February 27 to protest non-payment of their salaries but they later resumed duties after assurances by the CADD minister.

When approached for comment CADD Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry said “ The matter has been almost sorted out and just a procedure has to be completed”.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 10^th, 2017.