Law to ensure labourers’ safety soon

LAHORE
PROVINCIAL Minister for Labour and Human Resources Raja Ashfaq Sarwar has said the Punjab Occupational Safety and Health Council, after a consultation with all the stakeholders, will give a final shape to an effective mechanism and laws for ensuring the protection of life of labourers and saving them from accidents in factories, kilns, stone grinding units besides trade and commercial institutions.
A sub-committee, comprising District Labour Officers, representatives of Industries and Finance Departments, is being constituted for the selection of new employers and employees in the Minimum Wages Board.
He stated this while presiding over the meetings of the Occupational Safety and Health Council and Minimum Wages Board at the Civil Secretariat on Wednesday. Provincial Minister for Industries Ch. Muhammad Shafiq, Secretary Labour Ishrat Ali, DG Punjab Emergency Service Dr. Rizwan Naseer, DG Labour Welfare Saleem Hussain, MD Gujranwala Waste Management Company Atta-ul-Haq, representatives of All Pakistan Workers Confederation and concerned officers of the Labour Department were also present.
Addressing the second meeting of the Punjab Occupational Safety and Health Council, Raja Ashfaq Sarwar said the council had obtained suggestions from all the departments for ensuring enforcement of precautionary measures after the inspection of industrial units which would be presented for approval after the consideration by the Law Department. He said the protection of labourers and workers from accidents was an important matter and effective steps were being taken in this regard which included provision of safety dress, regular medical inspection, silicone test and compensation in case of any disease.