KARACHI: Leaders of representative labour organisations held a press conference at the Karachi Press Club on Thursday to reject the “anti-worker” draft of the Sindh Labour Code presented by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the Sindh Labour Department without consulting labour bodies.

The ILO has provided technical assistance to the Sindh government in drafting the labour code. The labour leaders declared that any attempt to legalise it will be strongly resisted.

Nasir Mansoor, general secretary of the National Trade Union Federation (NTUF) said that the code draft was a conspiracy to impose anti-labour laws on workers of Sindh without the established tripartite consultation process.

He further said that the Sindh Labour Code draft aims to usurp the basic rights of workers, which they had achieved through struggle of over a century.

Labour leaders describe the code as an attempt to end workers’ solidarity; vow to resist its implementation

“It is a blatant violation of the core conventions of the ILO, where the identity of a worker and their relationship with the employer has been eliminated.”

Mr Mansoor said that the current labour laws grant the right of permanent employment for workers, but the Sindh Labour Code seeks to legalise the “illegal contract labour system”, thereby imposing a wage slavery system in workplaces and providing capitalists with a legal excuse to evade their responsibilities.

Naseem Rao, Senior Vice President of the Pakistan Workers Federation, said that instead of making the definition of workers modern, comprehensive and better aligned with current needs, this code is making it more complicated, leaving workers entirely at the mercy of contractors, sub-contractors, or third-party recruiting agencies, which will reduce millions of workers to unrecognised wage slaves.

Liaquat Ali Shai, general secretary of the State Bank of Pakistan CBA Union, said that the proposed Sindh Labour Code “shamelessly” redefines factory owners into different categories, exempting them from their legal responsibilities and informalising the formal sector.

As a result, in the event of any industrial dispute, workers will be deprived of all basic rights such as legal action, social security, pension, unionisation, bonuses, working hours and gratuity.

Hussain Badshah, general secretary of People’s Labour Bureau, said that the labour code also proposes to legalise the inhumane system of advance payments, allowing owners to buy and sell workers, which will degrade the lives of workers in kilns and agricultural fields to worse than that of animals. The advance payment system is a modern form of slavery and a clear violation of the ILO conventions.

Farhat Parveen, secretary of legal affairs of the All Pakistan Lady Health Programme Workers Union, said that the worst aspect of the code was that it attempted to strip many employees in government institutions from grades one to 15 of their right to unionise and collective bargaining, violating ILO conventions 87 and 98.

Furthermore, she said that the Sindh Labour Code aims to end worker solidarity by eliminating their identity and dividing them into several layers and categories.

Zehra Khan, general secretary of Home Based Women Workers Federation, said that the code, imposed by the ILO and the Sindh Labour Department, places restrictions on the right to strike, making it practically ineffective and nearly impossible, even though it is a fundamental right.

She further said that the ‘Sindh Labour Code’ significantly increases bureaucratic powers.

Instead of simplifying the procedure for resolving industrial disputes, it makes it more complicated, time-consuming and impractical, she added.

Imran Ali, general secretary of the Pakistan Federation of Chemical, Energy and Mines, said that the code severely undermines workers’ basic rights to health and safety and finds ways to exempt owners from their responsibilities.

He also rejected the undemocratic process made by the Sindh government and the ILO.

Published in Dawn, July 12th, 2024