Fate of contractual employees hangs in the balance

FDE asks AEOs to stop biometric attendance of employees whose contracts expired

ISLAMABAD:

The Federal Directorate of Education (FDE) has issued a circular asking area education officers to stop the biometric attendance of employees whose contracts have expired and not been renewed.

The area education officers have also been instructed not to appoint any duty to those employees whose contract has expired.

FDE Director Admin Javed Iqbal Mirza in the notification has instructed heads of all institutions to send cases of contract employees (for renewal) two months prior to the expiry of the contract. The notification stated that a conduct report of contract employees and a justification for the renewal of their contract should also be sent to the FDE.

The notification stated that such employees whose contracts have expired should not be assigned duty. In the notification, it has been directed that the contract period should be clearly mentioned in the salary bills submitted to the AGPR.

Interestingly, the FDE has asked the area education officers to implement the notification, the contract of three area education officers has expired and they continue to work without renewal.

Bhara Kahu Area Education Officer Sohail Khan, Area Education Officer Urban-II Saira Amjad and Area Education Officer Suhala Nazmin Sohail are working on a contract and their contract has expired four months ago.

Sources said that if the circular issued by FDE will also apply to these AEOs or they will comply with the order. There are a total of 213 schools under these three EDOs in these three sectors and the computer contract employees are registered on biometric attendance and they have been working without salaries for the past eight years.

The contract of those employees have not been extended after working for such a long time without salaries. These contractual employees face the risk of being sacked from service without any prior notice.

Around 202 USF computer teachers were hired under a project in February 2022. They have not been paid their salaries since despite the release of the budget from the finance ministry. The three-year contract, which is extended every year, the first year's contract will expire at the end of January. These 202 computer teachers are without salaries.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, December 16^th, 2022.