LAHORE – Hundreds of Trained Graduate Teachers (TGT) working under the federal government nationwide, have been shown the door without any prior notification, as their three and a half years’ contract expired on February 15. The school teachers were initially employed on a two year contract on August 15, 2007 but instead of regularising their services after two years, as promised, they were given another one year contract on August 15, 2009.
They deserved regularisation of their jobs after three years of continuous service on August 15, 2010, in line with the government policy under a notification issued in October 2009, but another six month term was granted until February 15, 2011. The fired teachers who are facing an uncertain future, say it is unjust and unfair to remove experienced contract teachers who have performed very well in their respective federal government schools for the last three years and recruit new and experienced ones in their place.
They said that it is an issue of more than 400 trained teachers and be taken seriously. Teachers claimed that they were given a six month extension in order to regularise them but no step was taken in this regard. They pointed out that last year, services of contract teachers up to BPS-15 were regularised and an understanding was given that federal government teachers in BPS-16 would also soon be regularised.
A summary was also moved in this regard but no further action was taken. The teachers, in a state of desperation, said that if justice is not done and a permanent status is not given to them, they would be forced to come out on the streets to protest and demand justice just like employees of KESC and PIA.
An official, seeking anonymity, told Pakistan Today that all teachers were asked to give Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) exams and those who cleared the exams were made permanent.
He said that it is responsibility of the defence ministry to renew their contracts or make them permanent. The official said that as their contracts ended on February 15 therefore they had to say “Thank you very much” to them. Some of the contractual teachers told Pakistan Today that in addition to writing to the president and the PM, they would also bring their case into notice of CJP Iftikhar Chaudhry for getting justice.
The sacked teachers and their parents told Pakistan Today that last year officials concerned had promised to make permanent those teachers who are in BPS-17 or above. At the same time, a committee was formed to look into the case of TGTs who are teaching in BPS-16 to give them a permanent status. But even after three and a half years, officials concerned are sitting over their case and have not brought it into notice of higher authorities.
They said that teachers were deprived of a chance to appear in the FPSC exams.
