Call for universalisation of social security, unemployment allowance

Trade union and labour leaders on Friday demanded of the federal government to pay an unemployment allowance to all workers who had lost their jobs during the coronavirus and to universalise social security by making changes in the constitution.

Addressing a joint press conference at the Karachi Press Club, Karamat Ali from the Pakistan Institute of Labour Education and Research, Habib-ud-Din Junaidi from the People’s Labour Bureau, Nasir Mansoor of the National Trade Union Federation, Farhat Parveen from the NOW Communities, Zahra Khan from the Home-Based Women Workers Federation, and Jannat Hussain from the Pakistan Trade Unions Defence Campaign pointed out that the workers have been hit hard due to the Covid-19 pandemic and they were not receiving any support from the government.

“Merely paying a small amount through the Ehsaas programme to a small number of poor people is not a solution and this system is faulty. All the workers should be registered through Nadra and an unemployment allowance be paid through social security institutions,” said Ali.

He said the main demand of the Chicago workers was that the maximum working hours a day should be eight. “After this movement, their demand was accepted, and after World War II, many conventions were passed by the ILO to facilitate the work of the workers. The first convention of the ILO is pertaining to eight hours of work,” he said.

“Even in Pakistan, it is illegal to take more than eight hours of work from the workers, but in a reality, the workers are forced to work for 10 to 12 hours and they are deprived of overtime,” the Piler head said.

“Especially in the private sector, 12 hours of work is considered as normal. This way, the owners of private companies save time and engage fewer workers, which endanger workers’ health and safety.”

Junaidi said workers in almost every sector of the economy, including agriculture, industry, services and the media, were either unemployed or had had their wages/salaries slashed drastically. “The country’s labour laws are not being implemented, and the federal and provincial governments have turned a blind eye,” he said.

Mansoor said there were a very few organised workers and employers’ organisations in Pakistan. “The trade union movement in Pakistan is very weak, which can be gauged from the fact that only about one per cent of the workers in the country are organised in trade unions,” he said.

Parveen said all ILO conventions ratified by Pakistan should be implemented, and it should be seen that government agencies ensure compliance with the laws. “It is the responsibility of the government to provide a conducive environment for union formation and to encourage organisation in all areas,” he said.