Moot demands immediate registration of home-based workers

A labour conference on Friday demanded the Sindh government to immediately start the process of registering home-based workers in the province. The Home Based Women Workers Federation (HBWWF) organized the ‘Working Women Conference’ at the Arts Council of Pakistan, Karachi, which was attended by a large number of workers from different fields. 

The HBWWF general secretary Zehra Khan presided over the conference, while journalist and human rights activist Mehnaz Rehman served as the moderator. The speakers included Saira Feroze from HBWWF, Sabaghi Bheel from Agri General Workers Union, Fatima Majeeda from Fisherfolk Forum, journalist Lubna Jarar, transgender rights activist Hina Pathani, Shahida Noor and Dr Momal Nasir.

The speakers said that the numbers of women workers have been increasing globally. There are about 260 million home-based workers in the world, of which 57 percent or 147 million are women. About two-third of these workers belong in Asia.

They said that besides textile, garment, shoemaking, jewellery and food sectors, home-based workers were also found in industries related to airline and automobile, assembly of electronics and packaging of pharmaceuticals.

“In the modern world, home-based workers were in abundance in information technology, telecommunication, telemarketing and technical consultancy. Since the covid-19 pandemic, the numbers of home-based workers in informal sectors have risen significantly across the world. The same is true for Pakistan as well”, they said.

The speakers lamented that despite their considerable contribution in the country’s economy, the working women are deprived of their basic rights. They are not being registered with the social security institutions and paid below the minimum wage. The rule of equal wage for equal work is being criminally neglected.

According to a research, women workers are paid 30 to 40 percent less salary than male workers. Women made half of the country’s total 100 million workforce. Women workers faced sexual harassment and gender-based discrimination in factories, farms, offices, courts, hospitals and other institutions.

The speakers demanded to end all discriminatory laws against women, and criminalizing gender pay gap. They called for making of anti-harassment committees and daycare centres at workplaces. They urged the government to ratify the International Labor Organization’s convention 177 and start registration of home-based workers with all social security institutions.

The conference observed a minute of silence to remember the people being killed in Gaza during Israel’s aggression, condemning the US and the UK for supporting the atrocities against Palestinians.