Varsities’ faculties: MoF drafts summary for Cabinet on ending TTS-BPS pay disparity

ISLAMABAD: The finance ministry has drafted a summary for the federal cabinet, setting the stage for a long-awaited decision on addressing the widening pay disparity between Tenure Track System (TTS) and Basic Pay Scale (BPS) faculties in public universities across the country.

Official sources revealed that after years of administrative delays, inconsistent policies, and growing unrest among academics, the government is now poised to decide the future of the TTS pay structure.

The crisis dates back to a 2021 proposal—approved by the former Prime Minister—seeking to restore a mandatory 35 percent salary differential in favour of TTS faculty and introduce a 100 percent performance-based allowance for top researchers. But the Finance Division never validated the plan, arguing that only the federal cabinet can authorize recurring financial obligations.

With no formal approval in place, the proposal remained dormant, sparking frustration across universities.

Over the years, universities continued offering annual allowances, ad-hoc relief, and special perks to BPS faculty, while TTS salaries remained largely frozen. This eroded the salary advantage that the TTS model was originally built upon. In many universities, senior TTS academics now earn less than their BPS counterparts—an inversion that has undermined the credibility of a system designed to attract elite researchers through competitive compensation, sources added.

The imbalance has pushed TTS scholars to claim that the framework has become dysfunctional, discouraging performance and weakening research culture at public universities.

With thousands of academics waiting for clarity, many in academia believe the prolonged inaction has crippled the TTS model, originally introduced in 2002 to raise research standards and create globally competitive institutions.

TTS faculty associations have repeatedly urged the government to revive the model’s core principles, arguing that failure to do so risks driving top talent away from the public sector.

According to official sources, the Finance Division—working with the Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training and the Higher Education Commission—has almost finalized a summary proposing reforms to rationalize and enhance TTS salary scales. While details remain confidential, insiders say the proposal includes multiple options: reinstating the 35 percent differential, introducing new performance tiers, or redesigning allowances to ensure uniform implementation nationwide.

Once approved, the Cabinet’s decision will be relayed to all public universities for standardized, nationwide implementation.

Stakeholders view the upcoming Cabinet decision as a defining moment for Pakistan’s higher education landscape. A policy favouring TTS reforms could stabilize academic careers, strengthen research output, and restore confidence among scholars. Conversely, continued delays or a diluted approach may deepen governance strains and accelerate the loss of talent from public universities, officials added.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025