The federal government has decided to terminate nearly 4,000 permanent employees of the Utility Stores Corporation (USC) through a Voluntary Separation Scheme (VSS) as part of the ongoing privatisation process.
The USC Board of Directors, led by Federal Secretary for Industries Saif Anjum, approved the formation of a committee to finalise the VSS package, which will see regular employees transferred to the federal surplus pool prior to privatisation.
Sources revealed that USC is set to be shut down by July 30, 2025. This follows a meeting on June 30, 2025, chaired by USC Managing Director Faisal Nisar, where key decisions were made, including suspending all utility store operations across the country from July 1, 2025.
Zonal managers have been instructed to close store and warehouse accounts and submit reconciliation reports within a day.
The announcement was met with protests from employees and their representative bodies. However, USC management clarified that the closure notice had been a misunderstanding.
Despite this, the board later reaffirmed the decision, and it was confirmed that vendors would need to remove their goods from stores and warehouses by July 10.
The government has also initiated the process of vacating rented utility store buildings by August 1, 2025. A two-year audit report is expected by August, along with a detailed report on USC assets to assist in the privatisation efforts.
