'Four-day working week' notification circulating online is fake: MoIB

The Ministry of Information said on Thursday that a notification circulating on social media claiming that the government had changed the working week to four days was fake.

In a post on X, the ministry’s fact-check account warned, “A notification circulating on social media claiming changes to the Government of Pakistan's working days is fake,” it said.

“The public is advised not to believe or share such misleading content,” it said. The ministry also urged people to “rely only on official government channels for authentic notifications and announcements."

The document circulating online appeared to have been issued by the Cabinet Division and was dated September 16. It claimed to amend an earlier notification issued on September 15 and stated that the four-day working week would consist of Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, with Friday, Saturday, and Sunday designated as off days.

The fake notification followed Information Minister Attaullah Tarar’s remarks that the government was reviewing previous austerity measures amid rising fuel prices and disruptions to oil supplies.

Read: Relentless fuel shocks revive govt austerity talk

Tarar said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had directed consultations on which measures could be revived, including some that remained in force, such as market timings.

The remarks led to reports that the government could impose additional fuel conservation measures, including a smart lockdown. However, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry rejected the reports on Tuesday, saying a smart lockdown had neither been discussed nor was under consideration.

Past austerity measures

Previously, the government announced austerity measures on March 9 to mitigate the economic impact of the ongoing US-Iran war. They included a 50 per cent cut in fuel allowances for official vehicles, salary cuts for lawmakers and a partial work-from-home policy in the public sector.

The government ended the measures on June 19, except for market timings. However, in July, it emerged that the government was considering reverting to fuel conservation and austerity measures.

To cope with the crisis, the government introduced a daily petroleum pricing mechanism in July, replacing the previous weekly system, as global oil prices became increasingly volatile amid geopolitical tensions. Since then, repeated price increases have pushed petrol to Rs380.24 per litre and high-speed diesel (HSD) to Rs409.42 per litre.