Squeezing the salaried

The increased income tax rates in the federal budget have broken the proverbial backs of the salaried classes. The government has raised the salaries of many federal and provincial employees, which offsets this increase in income tax rates. But a vast majority of the salaried classes are working in the private sector, which is not bound to give similar salary raises to their employees.

This salaried class has no street power like the poor or financial power like that being wielded by the businesses. The salaried classes are actually having to bear the burden of the concessions given to powerful interest groups or voting blocs. They are taking on the ever increasing load of taxes till a day comes when there will be nothing left.

Ayub Malik

Rawalpindi