Health workers protest salary delays

As of the 17th day of Ramazan, a total of 255 daily-wage employees working at three major hospitals in Rawalpindi have yet to receive their salaries. These include 115 work-permit regular employees at Holy Family Hospital (HFH), 85 daily-wage workers at Rawalpindi Teaching Hospital (RTH), and 55 daily-wage employees at Benazir Bhutto General Hospital (BBGH), all of whom remained unpaid even on March 7.

Last month, the employees were paid wages for only 22 days, after eight days were deducted from their salaries.

As many 255 workers are performing duties in various departments across the three hospitals. However, due to the absence of a formally allocated budget for their salaries, payments had previously been made from alternative budgetary heads. Even so, last month's payments were issued with an eight-day deduction, while no salaries have been released so far this month as of March 7.

The situation has left the employees deeply concerned and financially distressed. The workers have demanded that their jobs be regularised and that their outstanding salaries be paid in full and on a regular basis. They have warned that if their demands are not addressed, they will be compelled to stop work and resort to protest.