Protection of workers’ right govt’s top priority: PM

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday directed registration of all labourers associated with formal and informal sectors in the country so that their complete record could be available. He said the steps taken for protecting the rights of labour community should be taken in phases.

Chairing a high-level meeting about the steps taken for welfare of labourers in the country, the prime minister said the real challenge was implementation of the required laws for protecting the rights of labours and it needed full concentration.

The prime minister said that it was top priority of the government to protect the rights of downtrodden sections of the society including labourers and domestic workers.

He appreciated the steps taken in this regard by the Punjab government. The meeting decided that after approval by the prime minister, the government was going to formally launch ‘Ehsas Programme for Labour’ under Ehsas Programme of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government.

The meeting was attended by Chairperson Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) Dr Sania Nishtar, Special Assistants Syed Zulfikar Bukhari, Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan, spokesperson Nadeem Afzal Chan, Special Assistant Yousuf Baig Mirza, Zahoor Awan, Majid Aziz, Shaukat Ali Khan, Dr Alia Khan, and Dr Laila Shahnaz. Representatives of International Labour Organisation, World Bank, Asian Development Bank were also present.

The meeting was told that the Ehasas Programme of the government for social welfare of the people was the biggest and a comprehensive programme in which a total of 115 social welfare programmes were being set up for poor, widows, orphans, patients, vulnerable people, labourers, peasants, jobless and shelter less, old people, poor students, women and other weak segments of the society.

The prime minister was told that under the ‘Mazdoor ka Ehsas’ programme, special attention was being given to welfare of domestic and overseas Pakistani labours associated with various fields.

The prime minister was told that presently no proper and effective system was in place in the country for welfare of labour community associated with various formal and informal sectors. The meeting was told that under the Ehsas Programme for Labour, Ehsas Labour Welfare and Social Protection Experts Group was being set up which would ensure to present recommendations for welfare of the labour community working in various fields.

The prime minister was told that under the ‘Mazdoor ka Ehsas’ programme registration process for labours associated with formal and informal sectors would be implemented in the next one year which would help in ensuring provision of pension and other facilities to the labour community. The meeting was told that Ehsas Labour Welfare and Social Protection Experts Group would identify and remove shortcomings and lacunas in the present labour laws so that it could be removed besides removal of corruption, exploitation and other problems in social welfare programmes for labour community could also be removed.

Dr Sania Nishtar told the meeting that on the directives of the prime minister, the number of Community Welfare Attaches, posted abroad at the embassies, was being increased. She said that offices of Protector of Immigration had also been increased while a detailed pre-departure briefing would be given to the labours going abroad about the working condition, their rights and other affairs in the required countries. The meeting was told that a Labour Market Information System was being initiated to ensure protection of labour’s rights.

The prime minister was also given a detailed briefing about progress on the labour laws and the legal and administrative steps for welfare of labour community at the provincial level.