In a major decision, the USC Corporation (USC) has launched a large -scale restructuring, causing the cessation of nearly 3,000 employees in a single day.
According to reports, the dismissal orders were issued on vacation, the first phase of the restructuring focused on the dismissal of daily wage workers.
The reports indicate that most of the licensed employees have been part of the company for over 10 years. In the next phase, thousands of contract workers should also face the termination.
This restructuring follows a recent decision by the federal government, as on January 22, the federal cabinet trained a committee to examine the potential closure of USC operations.
Government sources have revealed that the Committee will be led by the Federal Minister of Industries and Production, and will include key personalities such as the Minister of State for Finance and Income, the Minister of State for Computer Science, as well as that by senior officials of the ministries of the ministries of the ministries of the Ministries of the Ministries Finance, Industries, Privatization and Benazir Incue Program (BISP).
In August 2024, the federal government made the decision to close the USC Corporation (USC). Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif asked for proposals concerning the closure and, as part of this process, the government has also interrupted a subsidy of 50 billion rupees for the USC.
In addition, during a meeting chaired by the Prime Minister, a decision was made to reduce administrative costs and rationalize state machinery, leading to the closure of 28 departments in five ministries. These are in particular the Ministry of Affairs of Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, the Ministry of States and Border Regions, the Ministry of Information and Telecommunications Technology, the Ministry of Industries and Production, and the Ministry national health services.
The Ministry of Industries and Production also included the USC in the privatization list in August 2024. The privatization committee hired a financial advisor, with plans to privatize the company by stages.
On November 15, 2024, at a meeting of the Senate’s permanent committee on industries and production, Federal Minister Rana Tanveer Hussain revealed that 3,000 of the 11,000 USC employees had been hired during the mandate of the Former chief minister of Punjab, Manzoor Watto, who recruited them to the Trath of Dera Ghazi Khan.
Minister Tanveer confirmed that, while discussions had taken place on the closure of the USC, the Ministry of Industries and Production had opposed this decision. He also noted that many Balutchistan and Gilgit-Baltistan stores operated at a loss, with 2,400 of 4,300 stores signaling financial deficits.
