The Utility Stores Corporation of Pakistan has terminated over 3,500 contract employees, triggering outrage among workers and union representatives. According to Arif Shah, Secretary General of the All Pakistan Workers Alliance Utility Stores, termination letters have been issued to regional managers, who hold the authority to dismiss staff from grades 1 to 13.
In response, affected employees have planned a protest at Scheme Mor in Lahore. The Utility Stores Union has condemned the move, calling it illegal and in violation of a Supreme Court injunction. The union also announced plans to file a contempt of court petition on Monday.
In a rare act of protest, Nawab Shah Niaz Hussain Brohi, a regional manager of Utility Stores, reached out to JUI-F leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman through a formal letter. Brohi appealed for intervention, arguing that Utility Stores—founded by Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Shaheed Benazir Bhutto—were created to support the underprivileged. He further alleged that the closures were part of a conspiracy by a powerful sugar mafia aimed at dismantling the institution.
