PESHAWAR: The health workers at the Lady Reading Hospital on Wednesday boycotted their duties and protested against the government for planning to table a bill in the provincial assembly to pave way for their termination.

A protest meeting of the general body of workers was convened outside the administration block of the LRH which was addressed by health employees coordination council leaders Syed Roidar Shah, Adnan Azmat, Alamgir Javed, Murad Khan, Jamal Shah, Mohammad Ali and Ghulam Hussain.

The speakers claimed that the government was planning to present a bill in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly, seeking termination of health workers. They asked the government to take the employees coordination council into confidence before bringing any amendment to the relevant laws, otherwise they would announce a strike for an indefinite period.

“We do not want to observe strike and create problems for the patients, but the government is forcing us to agitate. In case of any mishap the entire responsibility would rest with the health department of the provincial government,” the speakers threatened through a resolution passed at the meeting.

On the occasion, Roidar Shah demanded of the government to regularise services of the contractual workers and increase their salaries.

Published in Dawn, April 27th, 2017