If you worked on Eid, or on Pakistan Day, or on any other gazetted public holiday, and your employer only paid you standard overtime for it, you may be owed more than that. Public holiday work and regular overtime are covered by different rules, and the difference is bigger than most people expect.
Public Holiday Pay Is Not the Same as Overtime
Standard overtime in Pakistan is typically calculated at double the normal hourly rate, 2x, for extra hours worked beyond a standard shift. Working on a gazetted public holiday is a separate category entirely, governed by Sections 35 and 49-I of the Factories Act, 1934, and it’s compensated at 300% of the normal daily wage, not 200%.
Why It’s 300%, Specifically
The 300% figure isn’t an arbitrary multiplier, it’s the sum of three separate entitlements for the same day of holiday work:
- Your normal wage for actually working that day
- A paid substitute holiday (a day off in lieu, elsewhere)
- One day’s paid compensatory holiday
In practice, most employers settle this as a straight 3x cash payment rather than actually scheduling two separate days off, but the legal basis for the 300% figure comes from these three distinct components being combined, not from a flat “triple pay for holidays” rule invented separately.
Which Holidays Count
This applies to gazetted public and religious holidays, the roughly 14 or so festival holidays announced annually by the federal Ministry of Interior and provincial governments, not to a day off an employer happens to grant informally. If you’re unsure whether a specific date you worked was an official gazetted holiday, that’s worth confirming before raising a pay discrepancy with HR.
Calculating Your Actual Owed Amount
Figuring out the difference between what you were paid and what you’re actually owed means comparing your normal daily rate against three different multipliers, standard time, 2x overtime, and 3x public holiday pay, potentially across several different days in a pay period. Our Overtime Calculator includes a dedicated note and calculation path for the public holiday rate specifically, so you’re not stuck manually tripling numbers or guessing which rate applies to which hours.
If the holiday pay discrepancy is part of a larger question about your full paycheck, gross salary, tax, EOBI, and Provident Fund together, our Salary Calculator gives you the fuller gross-to-net picture in one place.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the pay rate for working on a public holiday in Pakistan?
Under Sections 35 and 49-I of the Factories Act, 1934, working on a gazetted public holiday is compensated at 300% of your normal daily wage, made up of your normal wage for that day, a substitute holiday, and one day’s compensatory holiday.
Is public holiday pay the same as overtime pay?
No. Standard overtime is generally calculated at 2x the normal hourly rate for extra hours worked. Public holiday work is a separate, higher category at 300% of the normal daily wage, not the same rate as overtime.
Does the 300% rate apply to every day off, or only official holidays?
It applies specifically to gazetted public and religious festival holidays announced by the government, not to any day an employer chooses to close informally. Confirm a specific date was an official gazetted holiday if you’re unsure.
What if my employer only paid me double for a public holiday I worked?
If the day was a genuine gazetted public holiday and you were paid at the standard overtime rate instead of the 300% Factories Act rate, you may be owed the difference. Raise it with HR or payroll with the specific date and the relevant Factories Act sections, and consult a labor rights resource or legal advisor if it isn’t resolved.
Not sure if you were paid correctly for holiday work? Check your numbers with the Overtime Calculator.
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