The layoff is expected to affect employees within the lowest pay scale of 1-5 on an average income and working in grade 11-16. ILLUSTRATION: S JAMAL/FILE
The government will press ahead with its plan to lay off all contractual employees hired by the outgoing Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) government.
A month after the prime minister’s office made the decision, the Establishment Division issued an office memorandum, barring all ministries, divisions, autonomous bodies and corporations from extending contracts that expire this month.
However, an official privy with the development termed the measure as the only way to weed out people appointed by the PPP government.
As a policy to control the wage bill, most workers were hired on contracts by the previous government to deny them benefits which are otherwise available to regular employees. The layoff is expected to affect employees within the lowest pay scale of 1-5 on an average income and working in grade 11-16.
According to sources, employees of the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority, National Bank of Pakistan (NBP), Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM), Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), Planning Division will be affected the Most of those employees who were first hired on contract and then regularised by the PPP government will be sent to a surplus pool of employees, the sources revealed.
“The ban on recruitment process imposed by the government on the directions of prime minister’s office, shall be applicable on - extension in contract appointment of already recruited contractual employees,” the office memorandum states.
The memorandum states that extension will not be given to those who were appointed as contingent paid staff. The letter further reveals that there will also be ban on appointment by transfer and induction.
After coming into power in June last year, the PML-N government had imposed a ban on recruitment process.
This is not for the first time that the PML-N has decided to remove the people from jobs who were hired by the PPP. The incumbent Finance Minister Ishaq Dar had once disclosed during a Senate Standing Committee meeting that during its second stint, the PML-N government had laid off 56,000 people working in various state-owned banks.
Criticising the government, PPP Senator Raza Rabbani said, “History is repeating itself and I am not surprised.” Rabbani said the PPP will vehemently oppose the move and raise the issue in parliament. “This is nothing new whenever the PML-N comes into power it throws out people who are legitimately and legally hired by the PPP government in its tenure,” he added.
Rabbani said the move exposes the difference of philosophy, as the PPP never sacked employees hired by the PML-N government and treated them as servants of the state. Rabbani said he believed the affected employees will go to the court to seek justice.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 18th, 2014.
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This is not a well-thought out move at any rate. There is a DEARTH of employment in the country, what good is throwing out already employed people? Are they creating more job opportunities anywhere? Any other alternatives for the unemployed? And these employees mostly belong to the support/unskilled staff category (Peons, Waiters, Security Guards etc). One has to take into account all relevant facts. This is people's life and their livelihood. And lets not forget that NOT ALL APPOINTMENTS were made illegally; many competent and honest employees were hired as well during that tenure. I myself was hired through a rigorous selection process against pubicly advertised posts and over 1500 applicants. I joined a public sector organization in the spirit of public service ONLY (I had three separate offers at the time of hiring from three private sector organizations, one including from a multinational bank). Some way to recognize my intent and efforts! Granted a filter is required to weed out the incompetent and dishonest, but looking at this situation holistically and from an inside perspective, taking in all the realities on ground, this decision is absolutely appalling and reckless.
For this,there should be some committee to probe into the appointments.You cant just ignore the services of Competent and honest employees
A welcome and much needed move. Corruption party stuffed its incompetent and corrupt people everywhere resulting in decline and loss of institutions like PIA, PR, PS and other departments and divisions
My cousin was hired in nineties during PPP regime and then laid off in a subsequent PML regime. He remained laid off for nearly ten years. Then come the PPP Government again and he was restored, with the salary of the past ten years given to him without even working !!! the same will happen here.
And hire PMLN appointees ;-)
Brilliant move by Nawaz, it'll help to root out corruption and nepotism from our society.