BY virtue of the 18th Amendment, all labour laws were devolved to the provinces, which then got the authority to amend them or make new laws. They have been doing so but the lack of coordination among them has caused acute differences in benefits for workers.

The Employees’ Old-age Benefits Institution, constituted under the 1976 Act, is the only such scheme which continues to be administered centrally by the federal government of the day despite devolution. There is no doubt that issues relating to disbursement of pension to migrant retired employees will arise if the Act is devolved to the provinces. Nevertheless, over the last 13 years, the federal government has made no effort to give legal cover to retaining this scheme. In 2014, the Sindh Employees’ Old-age Benefits Act was promulgated but has not been operational as the federal government has not transferred the funds to Sindh.

EOBI was being managed smoothly until devolution and all three stakeholders — employers, employees and government — faced no issues. An increase in employers’ monthly contribution would mostly be followed by an increase in pension. After devolution, the federal government had no lawful authority to administer the scheme but has continued with it on an ad hoc basis.

A 2005 amendment to the Act of 1976 changed the basis of the monthly contribution by employers from a percentage of the fixed amount to the following: “‘wages’ means the rates of wages as declared under the Minimum Wages for Unskilled Workers Ordinance, 1969”. After devolution, any amendments carried out by the government in federal laws would only extend to Islamabad Capital Territory, and not beyond.

The provinces should coordinate their labour laws.

Fixing the minimum wage for unskilled workers became a provincial subject after devolution, but employers would not accept these for paying EOBI contribution as the relevant law for the purpose was the 1969 ordinance. Consequently, some employers continued to pay the contribution at six per cent of Rs6,000 per insured employee, which was the minimum wage rate under the latter ordinance at the time of devolution in April 2010.

In 2015, the federal government made an amendment to the 1969 ordinance, fixing the minimum wage at Rs13,000. The relevant notice to employers by the EOBI to pay a monthly contribution of 6pc of this amount was challenged by them across Pakistan before their respective high courts. They got favourable judgments from the Punjab, KP and Balochistan courts, whereby the EOBI’s claim was set aside.

The Sindh High Court in its judgement dated Feb 22, 2023, has held that employers are required to pay a contribution of 6pc of the prevailing minimum wage of Rs25,000 per insured employee. High courts in the other provinces have granted stay orders on paying the contribution at this rate. While employers in Sindh are paying it, those in the other provinces pay workers at rates ranging from 6pc of Rs3,000 to Rs13,000 or at whatever rate they deem appropriate.

The federal government would be empowered to resolve this issue by taking EOBI into its fold through a parliamentary majority. Doing so would be in the interest of all stakeholders. EOBI could then fix the same amount of contribution across the country. Pensioners wouldn’t have to wait for years for an increase in pensions; employers would have no cause to agitate. The authorities should realise that EOBI will not sustain the current ad hoc arrangement for long.

Another law which needs to have a uniform policy relates to maternity leave. The West Pakistan Maternity Benefit Ordinance, 1958, was promulgated by repealing existing laws on the subject. Under this ordinance, women with at least four months’ employment in an establishment immediately preceding the day of delivery are eligible to get 12 weeks of maternity leave with full payment of salary, six weeks before and six weeks after childbirth. The employer is prohibited from dismissing the services of a woman in this situation.

Punjab and KP follow leave stipulations of the 1958 ordinance, but Sindh has a total of 16 and Balochistan 14 weeks of maternity leave with different conditions for eligibility. As requirements are not different anywhere, it is more realistic to have similar conditions and quantum of leave in the entire country.

Under all these enactments, there is no limit to the number of times a woman may avail her maternity leave during her employment with the same employer. Conversely, most progressive organisations allow maternity leave only twice during a woman’s career. The respective provincial legislatures should also consider prevailing industrial practices to this effect. Having a realistic common policy for the grant of maternity benefits all over Pakistan will be more acceptable to employers.

The writer is a consultant in human resources at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi.

Published in Dawn, August 15th, 2023