'Son quota' restored by Prime Minister: KPT workers for immediate implementation of decision

Lauding Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani for restoring son quota scheme, Karachi Port Trust (KPT) workers on Monday demanded of the Federal Ports and Shipping Ministry to implement the decision on an immediate basis to provide relief to the retiring employees.
"The present government's decision to regularise the contract and daily wage employees and restore the son quota scheme is laudable and we [employee] are happy," said a KPT worker, Ghulam Ullah. Talking to Business Recorder, General Secretary People's Workers Union (PWU) Saleem Soomro said that the Prime Minister's announcement on last Saturday to restore son quota in KPT, besides regularising about 300 contract and daily wage employees would provide a major relief to the workers in face of the high inflation and rising unemployment in the country.
He said son quota had been banned in the KPT in 1996 and all workers after retirement were facing financial problems since then. He said the fresh retiring workers and officers would now have an opportunity to get their sons appointed in the trust under the scheme.
He said the restoration of son quota scheme was part of his union's electoral manifesto, adding that after achieving the chief goal his union would continue to solve other problems of the workers. After restoration of son quota the government should now focus on solving other problems of KPT employees, he added. He demanded that like the stipend-based workers, the KPT should also regularise the contract and daily wager. "The contract and daily wage employees are working for the last five years and they want due considerations for their jobs regularisation," Soomro said.
He said under the gold handshake scheme large number of employees voluntarily resigned from jobs, which reduced the number of total working staff of KPT from 14,800 to mere 5,000 at present. He said the KPT should implement the scheme with a view to increase the number of employees to augment the harbour's working efficiency. "The restoration of son quota will reduce the rising unemployment in the city," he hoped, adding that the PPP-led government had always fulfilled its pledges made with the KPT workers.