Utility Stores Employees Laid Off From September 1, Receive Rs19.54 Billion Package

The government has approved a comprehensive financial package worth Rs19.54 billion for employees of the Utility Stores Corporation (USC) who are being laid off under the corporation’s restructuring plan, effective from September 1, 2025.

Package Overview

A total of 11,406 employees, including permanent staff, contract workers, and daily wage earners, will be covered by this package. The initiative aims to compensate employees based on their length of service and employment type.

Benefits for Permanent Employees

For permanent employees, the package is divided according to service years:

Those with two years or less of service will receive full salaries for the remaining months of their tenure.
Employees with more than 20 years of service will be entitled to two continuous basic salaries for each complete year of service.
Those with exactly 20 years of service will receive three continuous basic salaries per complete year or, alternatively, 1.25 continuous salaries for their remaining service months.

In total, 5,229 permanent employees will benefit from a package worth Rs13.183 billion.

Benefits for Contract Employees

For contract workers, compensation has also been structured:

Workers with two years or less of service will get their full basic salaries for the remaining months.
Employees with 16 years of service will receive 30 basic salaries.
Those with more than 16 years will be given 35 basic salaries.

This plan covers 3,323 contract employees, who will collectively receive Rs3.62 billion.

Benefits for Daily Wage Earners

For daily wage earners, the package ensures fair compensation:

Those employed for two years or less will get salaries of Rs37,000 for the remaining months.
Workers with 10 years of service will receive 15 monthly salaries of Rs37,000 each.
Those with 10 to 15 years of service will be entitled to 28 monthly salaries, while employees with more than 15 years will get 30 monthly salaries.

Altogether, 2,854 daily wage earners will share more than Rs2.71 billion.

Inclusion of Previously Laid-Off Employees

The government clarified that contract and daily wage employees laid off earlier under the restructuring process will also be eligible for this financial relief package.