Prime Minister Approves Change in ‘In-Service Death Policy’, No Jobs for Deceased Employees’ Children

Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif Approves Revision to Employment Policy for Children of Deceased Government Employees**

In a significant move, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has approved a change in the ‘In-Service Death Policy’. According to the decision, which follows the Supreme Court’s ruling, the policy now dictates that children of government employees who die during service will no longer be automatically entitled to jobs in the same department.

Following the approval, the Establishment Division has issued instructions to all ministries and divisions to implement the decision accordingly. However, under the revised policy, the families of deceased employees will still receive benefits under a package approved by the Prime Minister.

Importantly, this change does not apply to the children of martyrs from law enforcement agencies or civilian employees killed in terrorist attacks. These individuals will continue to receive the benefits outlined in the previous policy.

Under the old policy, children of government employees who passed away during their service, or who were unable to continue due to health reasons, were automatically eligible for employment in the same department. With this new change, such preferential appointments will no longer be allowed.

It is worth noting that prior to this federal decision, the provincial governments of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had already implemented similar changes. Last year, the Punjab government made a similar move by abolishing Rule 17-A of the Punjab Civil Servants Act of 1974, which granted employment to children of deceased government employees. Similarly, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s revised policy also removed the provision for employment of children in the same department when an employee died during service.

In addition to this, the provincial government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has also eliminated the special quota for the children of disabled government employees, further limiting preferential treatment for their employment.

This shift in policy marks a major change in the way government employment is handled for the families of deceased or disabled employees, reflecting broader administrative reforms across Pakistan.