Female education officers await promotion

515 male colleagues promoted to Grade 19

LAHORE:

At least 241 eligible female officers of Punjab School Education Department have allegedly been ignored in promotions from Grade 18 to 19, while 515 male officials have been promoted.

The issue had also been raised in the Punjab Assembly, where lawmakers expressed concern over the prolonged delay in processing the promotion cases.

Following repeated demands the Promotion Selection Board-II (PSB-II) recently approved and notified the promotions of male officers. However, despite belonging to the same service cadre and meeting similar eligibility criteria the promotion cases of female officers have yet to be finalised.

According to sources, the department earlier processed the promotion cases of male and female officers simultaneously. Both categories were placed before the relevant authorities together, ensuring uniform implementation of promotion policies. This long established practice, however, appears to have changed in the latest round, leaving hundreds of female officers waiting without any explanation regarding the status of their cases.

An affected officer contended that they had fulfilled all requirements, including service length, performance evaluations, Annual Performance Evaluation Reports (APERs) and other departmental formalities.

"Many female officials in schools of the province have been serving in Grade 18 for several years and became eligible for promotion well before the recent PSB-II meeting. Despite completing all procedural requirements, their promotion cases have remained pending while their male counterparts have already assumed higher positions," complained a teacher, Saba Malak.

She said the teachers whose promotions had been delayed included school heads.

Officials familiar with the matter said one of the main hurdles delaying the promotion process was the completion and scrutiny of service record, including verification of seniority lists, disciplinary clearance and administrative observations. They said a delay in approvals from multiple administrative forums, coupled with procedural bottlenecks and file movement between departments had slowed the processing.

The promotion not only brings higher pay and allowances but also determines eligibility for senior administrative positions and career progression. Some officers argued that postponing their promotions could adversely affect their seniority in subsequent promotion boards.

A female officer said she was not requesting preferential treatment but equal application of the promotion policy.