Basheeran Bibi sits on the old shaky wooden chair in a single-room house located in the outskirts of Lahore. She is a devoted female laborer who has spent thirty years of her life working as a daily wage worker. Her condition looks extremely pitiful. Her dwelling reveals the deplorable picture of decaying walls, with icky pieces of construction material spinning in the air, making heaps of patches on the floor.
Living with her daughter in a largely patriarchal society, Basheeran has nothing to fund her daughter’s marriage, who like millions of other girls in Pakistan is waiting for a decent proposal.
“I have worked in six different factories without social security. The factory owner forced me out, because of old age, despite my services. My husband is mentally retarded and left me alone,” Basheeran laments. “If I had social security I would be able to get workers welfare fund and dowry grants. But I have not been that fortunate,” she adds.
Mahar Safdar Ali leading a Labor Day rally
Pakistan ranks near the bottom of the Global Rights Index
In Pakistan there are no social security benefits for workers. This is especially true for women operating in the informal economy that account for more than 70% of the total labor force. With the decisive group of poor people reliant on informal sector there is certainly a need for an effective security system that can reduce their stress.
“This is a golden opportunity for the laborers and trade unionists to enhance the labor standard. The European Union (EU) urged the authorities to improve labor standard under GSP+ initiative. The trade unions are repeatedly getting extreme setbacks from the authoritative bureaucracy over decades,” says Mahar Safdar Ali, a renowned labor activist who has written on bonded labor for many years.
“If we want to continue with the GSP+ status then we have to improve our labor standards. Pakistan has ratified 27 conventions of the GSP+ in which eight address core labor issues, while two discuss trade unions,” Safdar further informs.
Men grieve for their relatives after Baldia Town fire incident - Photo AFP
International Labor Organization (ILO) figures suggest that women comprise only 2 percent of the trade unions in Pakistan. The stat only depicts the formal sector, ignoring its massive informal counterpart wherein 70 percent of the contributors are women.
“One of the biggest issues the female laborers are facing in Punjab is labor inspection from male inspectors. When the male labor inspector investigates the wages, harassment and working conditions, the females are not in a position to openly discuss such issues. The factory owners have not set the working hours in accordance with labor laws. They are forcing women to work from 8:00 am till 8:00 pm,” says Shaheena Kausar, General Secretary, Women Workers Union.
“The ratio of the appointment letters among male factory workers is greater as compared to female factory workers clearly depicting that female workers are more prone to working irregularities like wage gaps, harassment and termination from job,” Kausar further added.
Female laborers supporting ITUC-PWF Global Action
Last month ILO and The Netherlands Embassy launched a unique cooperation intended to support Pakistan government, employers and worker unions in evolving steps to renew the country’s labor inspection system. Such advancements are essential to keep the large textile sector tempting for international investors, particularly after the GSP+.
History of trade unions
There is a long history of labor struggle against exploitation over the centuries from the French Revolution to the Combination Act of 1828. Malik Gokhale and his associates first started organizing the labor in the Indo-Pak sub-continent. Malik also published a paper titled ‘Maratha’ which became instantly popular.
In the beginning, the articles published in this paper were disseminated to study groups comprising laborers from different industries for awareness. The Bill Hands Association came into being under the auspices of ‘Maratha.’ In a way it was the first ever labor union in the Indo-Pak sub-continent. Slowly and gradually the wave of labor unionization reached British-India from England.
Generally, there used to be craft unions in England in those days, whereas, initially organizational-based labor unions were interestingly formed in British- India. For instance, the labor unions in Port Trust, Railway and Post Office etc, were the catalyst unions. Soon, labor unionization took momentum and consequently the Trade Unions Act was passed in 1926 under which labor unions were registered in order to give them legal status and official recognition.
After Pakistan came into being, the labor in the newly established state formed the Pakistan Trade Union Federation while severing formal ties with All-India Trade Union Congress. Famous activist Mirza Ibrahim was the first President of the Pakistan Trade Union Federation.
Workers are often denied the right to join a union or form their own - Photo AFPFILE
Weak unions leading to victimization
In Pakistan trade unions have failed to ensure any quality work and coalescence to claim the true spirit of labor rights. A substantial element adding to the weakening of trade unions in Pakistan has been the globalization of the economy which has propelled millions of laborers into unsafe and temporary contractual work with low wages, lack of social security benefits and poor health and safety conditions.
According to the 2014 International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) Global Rights Index of the World’s Worst Countries for Workers, Pakistan ranks near the bottom at four on a scale of one to five. Workers in countries with the rating of four have reported systematic violations of labor rights.
The global economy is stagnating, workers and their families are struggling and inequality rising, yet global leaders and international institutions continue to ignore a large slice of the solution — wages and social protection. In 2014, the ITUC Global Poll found that for over half (53%) of the world’s population, family income had fallen behind the cost of living.
FKN is an offshoot of Rashid Textile, located at SITE, an industrial zone of Karachi. It produces towels and yarn for export to the EU and other countries. For the company to recruit new workers on low paid wages, the management recently blocked the 24 sacked workers from entering the factory to begin their shift on July 18, just before the festival of Eid.
One of the sacked workers, Muhammad Nadeem, said that the working conditions inside the factory are extremely poor and that 900 workers are vulnerable. Many of the employees are forced to work up to 20 hours a day. The FKN factory workers are mostly employed via illegal contractors and have no rights to form a union. They are paid no social protection benefits and often do not receive their pay. On contacting, the FKN refused to comment on this issue.
Ishrat Ali, Secretary at the Ministry of Labor claimed in a recent BBC news report, that all domestic help will be registered and linked to social security within the next two years. Nosheen Abbasi, the President of Pakistan Workers Federation, who has represented labor unions in Pakistan for many years, has doubts over the secretary’s claim.
“Unions only represent 5% of Pakistan’s population. Their influence on lawmakers, who are mostly feudal lords and industrialists, is almost negligible. It does not make sense to them to release more power to the people,” Abbasi said.
“The continuous political turmoil and successive toppling of the governments in the past has exploited the laborers. The deterioration of trade unions began in the regime of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. That was the time when separation in trade unions had initiated and distinctive groups were battling to gain control. Later, in the Zia dictatorship, trade unions were demolished like several other state institutions,” says Khalid Mahmood, Director Labor Education Foundation.
“The trade unions are not delivering their best due to the historic shadow of dictatorship on politics of the country. The movement is interrupted by the strong division among the labors and the trade unions till today. However, the European trade unions first established local unions at the national level then led them to bargaining with all stakeholders. Where trade unions and informal labors repeatedly suffer from privatization policies they are also shocked by the ghastly globalization like cheap labor,” he adds.
“Majority of the issues in the industrial sector are related to low wages, working conditions, occupational health and safety at the workplace, and the right to organize a trade union and bargain collectively,” says Nasir Mansoor, Deputy General Secretary of the National Trade Unions Federation.
Farooq Tariq, Secretary General AWP, says “With regards to victimization of trade unions in private sector, it is important to understand that bosses have strong support from state institutions against the unions. Institutes like Labor Department, Army and the Police help the industrialists instead of the workers. The most common method is firing the laborers as there are no written contracts in the private sector. Absence of written contracts means the workers have no legal rights”.
He continues: “It looks that police has particular dictation to curb labor unions standing for rights and fighting against privatization. Everyone knows that the privatization orchestrated by the IMF is the most detrimental plan of the current government against the proletarians of Pakistan. It is the action of their neo-liberal doctrines.”
ILO trainings — reshaping trade unions
The trade unions are legal bodies established to safeguard the interests of workers against injustices, discrimination and unfair labor practices. The constitution of Pakistan, ILO conventions and United Nation declarations allow workers the right to form associations or unions to protect laborers in formal and informal sectors.
Even in the 21st century, laborers are being exploited in various Pakistani sectors. However, several human rights organization and the ILO are working to strengthen the trade unions. Numerous laborers ensured that they have gained adequate skills and knowledge from ILO trainings. They also said that trade unions are organized by bringing the entire labor class on a single platform.
Promoting Gender Equality for Decent Employment (GE4DE), established under the ILO project, is funded by the Canadian government. The project, which aims to improve women’s skills and employment by working with government, employers, workers and media, identified domestic work as a sector where many women were employed in the most vulnerable, unprotected conditions, completely outside the purview of labor laws.
Pakistan Workers Federation (PWF) has formed the Domestic Workers’ Trade Union, under (GE4DE) – the very first union of its kind in Pakistan. The ‘Domestic Workers’ Union has been registered with the Office of the Registrar Trade Unions, Lahore under the provisions of the Punjab Industrial Relations, Act 2010. The union currently has 235 members — out of which 225 are female domestic workers. PWF is now in the registering the union with the global ‘International Domestic Workers’ Federation’.
“We take care of some of the most important things in our employers’ lives, their homes, their children, their food, but our work is not considered important,” says Shamsad Murree, a domestic worker in Lahore who has been trained by the project, and is now the Vice President of the Domestic Workers’ Union.
“The initiative also includes piloting a model contract between employer and employee and a grievance redressal system. So far 400 domestic workers have been trained and are now being helped by a placement officer to find jobs in conditions of decent work”, explains Razi Mujtaba Haider, — Programme Officer, ILO.
“The registration of the Union was an important step in recognizing domestic workers and workers under law. Now steps should be taken to establish minimum wages and expanding access to social security schemes,” says Tahir Manzoor, Director, Department of Labor and Gender Focal Person, Punjab.
In the first quarter of 2015, under (GE4DE) ‘Training of trainers’ course for trade unionists on the theme Decent Work for Migrant Workers was conducted for capacity building of 30 participants from major trade unions from all over the country.
“In the past, migrant workers were not seen as traditional trade union constituency. As a collective bargaining agent, unions have focused on the local workers. In the current international labor market scenario trade unions’ role in protection of migrant workers at country of origin and destination is very strongly desired. From 1971 till 2014, 7.96 million Pakistani contractual workers proceeded abroad and brought various benefits to Pakistan in terms of advance skills, knowledge, social contacts and remittances,” says ILO Programme Analyst Belinda Chanda.
In May this year, PWF established a new body under ILO, called Domestic Workers Union Pakistan (DWUP). DWUP’s objective is to protect the rights of domestic help across Pakistan and it’s already setting out to make a difference in Punjab. Regardless of how well intentioned DWUP may be, or how commendable their ambition is, it is too soon to assess the efficacy of a body that promises fair pay, health and education benefits, overtime work regulation and protection to millions across the nation.
A significant number of workers from various sectors have informed that they have enhanced their aptitude and knowledge in their respective fields. Such trainings ought to be started on a regular basis to cover the far flung territories of the country and enhance labor knowledge, and create awareness about the participation in trade unions. This would help laborers play a significant role in economic development of the country through a more skilled labor force in the decades to come.
Haroon Janjua is a freelance journalist based in Islamabad, Pakistan. He is the 2014 International Green Apple Award winner. He can be reached at Twitter @JanjuaHaroon
