ISLAMABAD: The workers of Pakistan’s Water and Sanitation Services Company on Wednesday demonstrated against the non-payment of salary for three months in Bannu, Dawn reported.
Dawn is a Pakistani English-language newspaper.
The protesting employees gathered outside the office of tehsil municipal administration where they burnt old tyres and closed the road for vehicular traffic. They raised slogans in favour of their demands.
On the occasion, workers’ leaders Abdul Rauf, Noor Mohammad, Farmanullah and others said the company had been running without a chief executive officer for over two years. They said employees had not been paid salary for the last three months, as per Dawn.
They said non-payment of salary had multiplied the sufferings of poor employees, and asked the government to order an audit of the company’s accounts from 2017 to 2023.
They warned to lock the offices of the company and municipal administration if their salary was not paid immediately.
Meanwhile, the World Bank has reported an increase in poverty in Pakistan during the previous fiscal year due to soaring food and energy prices, labour market challenges, and flood-related damages, Dawn reported.
According to the Macro Poverty Outlook, which was prepared for the recent annual meetings of the World Bank and IMF in Marrakesh, Morocco, prolonged and high inflation in food and energy prices, combined with a lack of substantial economic growth, could lead to social upheaval and negatively impact the well-being of disadvantaged households that have already seen their savings dwindle and incomes decline.
The report indicates that poverty has risen due to declining wages, reduced job quality, and the impact of high inflation on the purchasing power of people living in poverty, according to Dawn.
Inflation is expected to remain elevated at 26.5 per cent in fiscal year 2024 before moderating to 17 per cent in fiscal year 2025 due to high-base effects and a decrease in global commodity prices. (ANI)