Pakistan hiring and employment compliance are important aspects of any expansion in the region. You have to ensure you’re meeting Pakistan employment compliance laws with every employee you recruit and hire. Then, you need to onboard them, draft all the employment paperwork, and continue to run your company. Globalization Partners will make a difference in the recruiting and hiring processes from day one. We’ll hire employees who work on your behalf, add them to a compliant payroll, and ensure they meet all your needs.
Recruiting in Pakistan
Most organizations do not have structured recruiting processes. Proper job analyses, a reliable job description, and thorough employee specification can go a long way toward helping you find the right talent. The country has only a few external recruitment agencies, and most have little experience. We recommend hiring on your own or working with an experienced global PEO such as Globalization Partners for Pakistan staffing and recruiting.
The most common recruitment strategy in this country is placing an advertisement in a leading national daily newspaper on a Sunday. The ad should be in both Urdu and English to reach a wider audience. Many private sector companies fill jobs by relying on personal references and do not place any ads.
We recommend following this general process:
- Create a job description and selection criteria
- Write a job specification
- Determine how candidates will apply and be assessed
- Create a competitive pay package
- Advertise the vacancy
- Put together a shortlist and interview applicants
- Do a background check and call references
- Appoint the right person
Laws Against Discrimination in Pakistan
You must follow Pakistan’s recruiting laws during the hiring process. If you don’t, you could face fines or other sanctions. You must understand your employees’ legal rights and stay up to date with changing policies and practices. For example, you cannot discriminate based on an employee’s:
- Age.
- Gender.
- Language.
- Marital status.
- Religion.
- Race.
- Impairment.
- Pregnancy.
- Family status.
- Social status.
If you’re unfamiliar with the country’s laws, consider working with a global PEO. At Globalization Partners, we know the nuances of these laws based on location, so we can make sure you stay compliant while you focus on running your business.
How to Hire Employees in Pakistan
Hiring Pakistani employees needs to start with establishing a personal relationship, which is critical in the country. Negotiating is also an art form in Pakistan that typically occurs among senior members, so you should prepare for long discussions about business and also hiring terms. Although the national language is Urdu, only 8% of the population speaks it, and the rest speak more than 80 languages. If you don’t have someone in your company who’s fluent in all these languages, it’s important to hire a team member or translator who can work with employees.
All businesses that have 20 or more employees must draft a formal employment contract every time they hire someone. These contracts should be in the local language and spell out all the terms of compensation, benefits, and termination requirements. All compensation and other salary amounts need to be in Pakistani Rupee instead of foreign currency.
Pakistan Employment Laws
Pakistan employment compliance laws dictate the typical workweek for all employees. Full-time employees typically work 48 hours over six days a week — eight hours a day. They are not allowed to work more than nine hours a day or 48 hours a week without getting paid overtime.
When you hire employees in Pakistan, they’ll need to provide you with a Form IT-3 – an income tax return form – once employed. Companies also need to register with the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) by filing a TRF01 taxpayer registration form or registering on the FBR website.
Onboarding in Pakistan
After you understand how to hire Pakistani employees, you need to onboard them in a way that makes employees comfortable. While there’s no legally mandated way to onboard employees, you can take steps to introduce them to your company. Start by going over the employment contract together as well as a company code of conduct and any other important documents. You can also choose to onboard multiple employees at one time to try to establish camaraderie and build a bond among coworkers.
Benefits of Hiring Outsourcing in Pakistan
You can receive a variety of benefits through choosing Pakistan hiring outsourcing services with Globalization Partners. We’ll source the right talent for your open positions and ensure you meet every compliance law along the way. We’ll also add them to our local payroll and give out the right compensation and benefits. As a result, you won’t have to go through the lengthy subsidiary process or worry about Pakistan employment compliance — Globalization Partners will take care of everything.
Work With Globalization Partners To Expand Globally
Globalization Partners will help make your expansion easier through our Employer of Record solution. Contact us today to learn more.
