The Supreme Court of Azad Jammu and Kashmir has directed the government to ensure the payment of minimum wages to employees, ruling in favour of the workers in an important case on the issue.
The court gave its decision in the appeal titled Government of Azad Jammu and Kashmir versus Munawar Shah and others. In its ruling, the apex court of the region upheld the decision of the Azad Kashmir High Court dated 21 February 2025, keeping that judgment intact.
The Supreme Court directed all secretaries of the government to ensure that the applicant employees are paid the minimum wage in accordance with the government notification. The court also directed that the arrears due to the employees from 27 October 2022 onwards must be paid.
Under the court’s decision, the relevant government departments have been instructed to ensure the payment of the minimum wage to employees, along with the pending dues. The ruling covers employees who had approached the courts seeking the enforcement of their right to the minimum wage.
The minimum wage in Azad Kashmir has been fixed by the government at Rs40,700 per month. However, many employees working in different government departments on an ad-hoc, temporary or contingent basis are forced to work for monthly salaries ranging from Rs15,000 to Rs35,000, far below the notified minimum.
The gap between the notified minimum wage and what these workers actually receive has been a long-standing grievance. Employees on temporary and contingent arrangements often perform the same duties as regular staff but are paid much less, and they have little job security.
Workers in the forest department are among the worst affected. Beldars, the field workers of the department, are paid only Rs15,000 to Rs20,000 per month, an amount that leaves them facing severe difficulties in meeting the needs of their families.
With the cost of living rising, a monthly income of Rs15,000 to Rs20,000 is not enough to cover food, housing, education and medical expenses. The workers say the low pay has pushed many families into hardship, and they have been pressing the government for relief for a long time.
Following the Supreme Court’s decision, the employees now have a strong chance of receiving not only the minimum wage going forward but also the arrears owed to them since October 2022. The payment of backdated dues would bring significant relief to the affected families.
The decision is expected to benefit a large number of government employees across Azad Kashmir, particularly those on ad-hoc, temporary and contingent appointments. The court has placed the responsibility on the government secretaries to make sure the orders are implemented.
