A total of 255 employees at three Rawalpindi government hospitals remain unpaid as of the 18th of Ramazan, escalating tensions with only a dozen days left before Eidul Fitr. At Holy Family Hospital alone, 115 regular employees have been without pay for an extended period following salary deductions last month that covered only 22 days’ worth of wages.
Meanwhile, another 85 daily-wage workers at Rawalpindi Teaching Hospital (RTH) and 55 daily-wage employees at Benazir Bhutto Hospital face the same plight. These hospitals have lacked a dedicated budget for staff salaries, with payments previously sourced from various alternative heads which are now depleted.
Staff at RTH have already taken to protesting in the past over demands for permanent employment and regular salary payments. The prolonged delay has raised serious concerns among employees across all three hospitals. Today’s situation is pushing them to demand immediate payment of their full salaries, including arrears, with threats of further work stoppages should their needs not be addressed promptly.
As Eidul Fitr approaches in mere days, the plight of these unpaid workers highlights broader issues within Rawalpindi’s healthcare sector and underscores a recurring cycle of financial instability affecting public health services.