Govt Abolishes 30,000+ Jobs and Ends Son Quota Policy
- Abeera Marium Siddiqui
- April 17, 2025
- 1:17 pm
- 37
- Current Affairs
The federal government has launched a major plan for government job cuts, removing over 30,000 positions and ending the controversial son quota policy
As part of a major reform push, government job cuts have become a central policy under Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s administration. The plan is part of a broader rightsizing effort to reduce unnecessary posts and control government spending.
So far, officials have removed 30,968 jobs. Another 7,724 positions are expected to be cut in the coming phases. Most of these cuts target lower-grade roles, especially in Grade 1. Out of these, 7,305 Grade 1 jobs have already been abolished, with 4,253 more on the list.
However, higher grades are not exempt. The government has ended two jobs each in Grades 21 and 22. It has also cut 36 posts in Grade 20 and 99 in Grade 19. In addition, 71 more Grade 19 positions will be removed. For Grade 18, 203 jobs have already been cut, and 36 more are scheduled to go. Meanwhile, Grade 17 saw 760 posts abolished, with 58 more expected to follow.
These steps are part of an ongoing effort to make the public sector more efficient. According to a Senate briefing, these reductions have already saved the national exchequer around Rs30 billion. Officials believe more savings will follow as the cuts continue.
Besides job reductions, the government has also taken a significant policy step. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has officially ended the long-standing “son quota.” This policy allowed the children of deceased government employees to get public jobs without going through open competition.
The decision aligns with a Supreme Court ruling. Following this, the Establishment Division issued clear directives to all ministries and divisions. From now on, no one can claim a government job based on family ties under the previous quota system.
The Prime Minister made these changes under the PM’s Assistance Package. Officials confirmed that all departments must now follow merit-based hiring. This move is expected to ensure equal opportunities for all citizens and build a fairer public service system.
The Cabinet Secretary shared these details during a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Finance, chaired by Saleem Mandviwalla. The committee members were informed that the rightsizing plan is already showing results. More updates are expected as the implementation continues across departments.
