ISLAMABAD: The Federal Health Alliance (FHA) on Monday decided to use all possible options, including protests and strike, to get the health risk allowance on running basic salary unfrozen.

Representatives of all hospitals gathered at the National Institute of Health (NIH) and attended a meeting hosted by the Workers Welfare Association NIH President Malik Qaiser and attended by FHA Chairman Kaleemullah, President Chaudhry Qamar Gujar, General Secretary Dr Yousuf and others.

The participants decided to hold another meeting on Tuesday (today) at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) in which further line of action would be announced.

Qamar Gujar, while talking to Dawn, said the health allowance was approved in 2013 but frozen by the then finance minister Ishaq Dar in 2015 and could not be restored.

“Now an executive allowance has been given to employees of a number of departments. This year, they have gotten almost 40pc allowance and two above scales but we have been ignored. During the current financial year, allowances in Presidency, National Assembly, Federal Investigation Agency, National Accountability Bureau and other departments have been restored but our allowance could not be restored,” he said.

“There are five hospitals in the federal capital and we have been considering closing them if the health risk allowance is not restored,” Mr Gujar said.

Protest by MTI employees

Meanwhile, employees of Pims who were appointed under the Medical Teaching Institution (MTI) held a protest and demanded regularisation of their services, increase in salaries, medical allowances and restoration of the critical area allowance.

They also demanded that they should not be given fixed salary like daily-wage employees.

In November 2020, President Dr Alvi promulgated the MTI ordinance under which Pims was to be run through a board of governors (BoG). Members of the board were appointed and notified by the Ministry of National Health Services on the recommendation of a search and nomination council.

Even though employees protested against the ordinance, it sailed through parliament. Later, some appointments were made under MTI Act 2021. The current [PDM] government passed the MTI Repeal Bill and sent it to the president to get his nod but he returned it with a suggestion to reconsider it. So, the government was left with no choice but to pass the bill again in a joint session of parliament on December 20, 2022.

Over 200 employees, including 44 professors, associate professors, assistant professors and casualty medical officers, 168 charge nurses and six members of the management committee, were appointed during the tenure of MTI and they got the salaries till December 2022 and then although allowed to continue working could not get paid as the management said MTI had been abolished. Later, two years’ contracts were given to the employees.

Published in Dawn, August 8th, 2023