LAHORE: Hundreds of activists from the All Government Employees Grand Alliance (AGEGA) Punjab protested against cut in pension, gratuity and leave encashment.

The protest took place outside the civil secretariat, with employees carrying placards and banners criticising, what they termed, the government’s anti-worker policies.

The interim Punjab government had issued notifications for these cuts, prompting AGEGA activists to demand that Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz revoke them.

During the interim government’s period, a crackdown on protests led to the detention of many AGEGA leaders. They were taken to Jati Umrah for negotiations with Maryam Nawaz, who promised to revoke the notifications after coming into power.

Despite ending the initial protest, AGEGA leaders have continued to demonstrate outside the secretariat for the past few months to remind Maryam Nawaz of her promise.

The AGEGA leaders, including Punjab Teachers Union president Rana Anwarul Haq, Rana Liaqat, Nadia Jamshaid, Saeed Namdar, Chaudhry Muhammad Ali, Mian Arshad, Tahir Islam, Mirza Tariq, Rana Khalid, Mustafa Wattoo and Ghafar Awan addressed the workers outside the secretariat.

They said the government should increase the salaries and pension of the employees but it was cutting the pension, gratuity and leave encashment.

They said the employees who served during their youth were rendered high and dry in their old age.

They said the government had ended rule 17-A and it was an economic benefit for the families of the deceased employees.

They said the government increased the salaries of the members of the parliament but cut the pension and gratuity of employees.

They said the employees would fight for their rights and would ensure reversal of these anti-employee notifications.

They announced a sit-in in Lahore and Islamabad against the anti-employee policies of the government.

Published in Dawn, January 10th, 2025