Teachers take out rally for pay raise

Islamabad:The federal government employees have warned they will stage a sit-in in the federal capital again if their demands for pay raises and promotions are not accepted by May 23.

They issued the warning during a rally arranged by the All Government Employees Grand Alliance (AGEGA) in front of Parliament House. The participants included scores of teachers, who showed up on the call of the Federal Government College Teachers Association (FGCTA).

General Secretary of the FGCTA Dr. Nazir Ahmed Bhutta demanded of the government to fulfil its promise/agreement made on February 11, 2021. He said under the agreement, all ad hoc allowances should be merged with basic pay; time-scale promotion and up-gradation should be granted to employees, and pay and pension reforms should be made to reduce pay disparity.

FGCTA (local unit of H-9 College) president Professor Tahir Bhatti demanded the restoration of the Saturday weekly off for government employees, who, he insisted, couldn't afford to attend offices six days a week due to a massive hike in fuel prices during the recent months. He said the government should declare Saturday a close day yet again to save energy.

FGCTA senior vice-president Professor Farhan Azam said the salaries of employees of different departments had a huge gap causing frustration amongst low-paid employees of the same grade. He demanded a uniform pay and privilege mechanism for employees of the same grade. Chief coordinator of AGEGA Rehman Bajwa warned that if the employees' demands were not met, they would take to the streets on May 23 after consultation with their leadership.