Outstanding dues: Wasa employees threaten to suspend supply to Gilgit

GILGIT:

Employees of Water and Sanitation Authority (Wasa) Gilgit have once again threatened to suspend water supply to consumers if they were not paid their four months of outstanding salaries.

“We cannot wait for our dues any longer,” Ejaz Khan, a representative of Wasa’ss employees union told journalists on Tuesday. He said that over 1,200 employees of Wasa have not been paid salaries for the past four months, adding that the authority is “forcing them to take extreme steps”.

If the employees cut off water supply to Gilgit, over 30,000 residents of the valley and adjacent areas are expected to face water shortage.

The employees’ union had called off a similar protest strike earlier this month after the authority assured that their dues will be cleared by the end of the month. Some of the employees were issued cheques for one month salary but the cheques bounced.

A spokesperson of the Chief Minister Secretariat assured that the issue will be resolved soon.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 25^th, 2012.