PESHAWAR, Tuesday, September 22, 2026: The Employees Union of the Small Industries Development Board has urged the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government to immediately implement the Rs45,000 monthly minimum wage for eligible daily-wage workers and pay arrears from July 2026.
Union President Nasim Khan appealed to Chief Minister Sohail Afridi to intervene and ensure that the minimum wage announced in the provincial budget for 2026-27 reaches workers without further delay.
The KP government announced an increase in the minimum monthly wage from Rs40,000 to Rs45,000 as part of its relief measures for the 2026-27 fiscal year.
Khan said nearly three months had passed since the beginning of the new financial year, but a large number of daily-wage and contingent-paid workers had yet to receive the benefit of the higher wage.
He said the issue also affected workers serving in autonomous and semi-autonomous bodies, many of whom depended entirely on their wages to cover essential household expenses.
Rising costs of food, electricity, education, healthcare, transport and house rent had made it increasingly difficult for low-income workers to meet basic needs on their existing earnings, he added.
The union president said the minimum-wage increase should not remain confined to a budget announcement and called for clear implementation instructions to all relevant provincial departments, autonomous bodies and institutions.
He demanded that eligible workers receive the financial benefit with effect from July 2026 and that any outstanding arrears be calculated and paid accordingly.
Khan also called on the chief minister to direct the Finance, Establishment and other concerned departments to address any administrative or financial hurdles delaying implementation.
He said thousands of daily-wage workers across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were waiting for the promised relief and urged the provincial government to ensure its implementation at the earliest.
“These workers have limited means of livelihood and cannot afford further delay,” Khan said, calling for the Rs45,000 minimum wage to be implemented in letter and spirit from July 2026.