ISLAMABAD, June 1: The government is expected to offer some shares of the Pakistan Telecommunication Company (PTCL) to workers to end an ongoing strike against the company’s privatization, sources told Dawn. They said the government was likely to offer five to 10 per cent of the company’s shares to the workers who have been in control of the PTCL headquarters here at Sector G-8/4 since Wednesday.

In the past the government had offered shares to employees while privatizing some industrial units. Sources said the offer of shares, coupled with a relief package from the management, is likely to end the deadlock as some of the union leaders are said to be considering the government’s offer. They said the workers would have to match the price of a share offered by new bidders.

Privatization Minister Dr Hafeez Shaikh told Dawn that the privatization process of PTCL would be completed by the scheduled date of June 10.

The 10-member PTCL Unions Action Committee held a meeting with secretaries of interior, information technology, privatization commission, inspector general, Islamabad and chief commissioner at the interior ministry and discussed various options to end the deadlock.

Some union leaders were angry over the non-representation of the ministry of labour, manpower and overseas Pakistanis in the meeting.

A spokesman for the action committee, Azad Qadri, told Dawn that it was ironic that not even a single official of the labour ministry was present in the meeting despite the fact that it was a pure industrial issue and not a matter of law and order.

He said the workers still wanted the government to reverse its decision on privatization and so far they had received no offer of shares from the management.