The Peshawar High Court has ruled that all private schools operating in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are legally bound to provide social security benefits to their employees, including teachers and non-teaching staff. The decision reinforces employee welfare laws and ends uncertainty surrounding the application of social security regulations to private educational institutions across the province.
The verdict was delivered by a two-member bench comprising Justice Syed Arshad Ali and Justice Dr Khurshid Iqbal. The court dismissed a petition filed by the Private Education Network, which had challenged a government notification issued on January 6, 2025, declaring private schools as covered establishments under the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Employees Social Security Act 2021.
During the hearing, the petitioners argued that private schools are already regulated under the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Private Schools Regulatory Authority Act 2017. They claimed this law should prevail over the social security legislation. However, the court rejected this stance, ruling that both laws operate independently and serve entirely different purposes.
The bench observed that the regulatory authority law focuses on school registration, fee structures, and academic standards, while the social security law is a welfare statute designed to protect employees. The judges emphasized that worker welfare cannot be compromised under the pretext of regulatory overlap or administrative inconvenience.
The court also dismissed arguments that providing social security benefits would impose an excessive administrative or financial burden on private schools. It ruled that charitable status or regulation under another statute does not exempt any institution from fulfilling legal obligations toward employee welfare.
With the dismissal of the petition, the earlier stay order was lifted, making the notification fully enforceable. As a result, private schools across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa must now register with social security authorities and ensure benefits such as medical coverage and employee protection schemes for their staff.
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