Labour leaders see no govt efforts for ensuring safe workplaces

Even after the passage of a decade since the Baldia factory fire incident in which more than 260 workers were burnt alive, the authorities concerned are yet to ensure the safety of workers at factories and other workplaces.

On the 10th anniversary of the tragedy, labour and trade union leaders demanded the implementation of the international accord in Pakistan to improve the health and safety conditions at factories and other workplaces.

The National Trade Union Federation (NTUF), the Ali Enterprises Factory Fire Affectees Association (AEFFAA) and the Home-Based Women Workers Federation (HBWWF) on Sunday organised a rally outside the Ali Enterprises garment factory.

The event was attended by the heirs of the labourers who had lost their lives, as well as political workers and representatives of human rights organisations. They carried pictures of the deceased workers and lit lamps in their memory.

NTUF General Secretary Nasir Mansoor said: “Ten years have already passed since the Baldia factory fire incident, but factories and other workplaces in Pakistan still lack health and safety measures. Even today factories and other workplaces are virtually killing fields for the hapless workers.”

Mansoor said that millions of workers belonging to the textile and garment sector are deprived of basic labour rights like minimum wages, the right to form trade unions, social security and pension.

He said that local supplying factories of international brands are also involved in this crime, while workers have become wage slaves. This situation in the backdrop of GSP Plus would bring negative consequences for Pakistan’s economy, he added.

He also said that GSP Plus is going to expire by the end of the year, and if the anti-worker attitude is not changed, the duty concession in the European markets will be withdrawn, and around a million Pakistani workers will lose their jobs. He pointed out that it is an encouraging step that in Germany, through legislation international companies are made accountable for their misdeeds anywhere in the world.

AEFFAA Chairperson Sadia Khatoon said that due to the greed of capitalists, our innocent children lost their lives. She said greed is in the blood of capitalists, be they local or international.

She also said that the number of workers dying in workplace accidents is rising. She pointed out that the heirs of the Baldia factory fire victims are yet to receive justice. She further said that the German brand KiK has not apologised to the heirs of the victims to this day. She added that Saeed Ghani is not only the labour minister of Sindh but also the son of a labour leader, yet the heirs are not getting justice from his department.

HBWWF General Secretary Zehra Khan said the Sindh Labour Department is doing nothing for implementing the labour laws. She said that even the rules of the health and safety law are yet to be framed.

She pointed out that women workers face sexual torture and harassment at workplaces, but their voices are being gagged. She said that the authorities provide security only to factory owners.

She said that specific people are recruited by factory owners for the harassment of their workers. She also said that after private institutions, the contract labour system is also being extended to governmental and workers’ welfare institutions.

She further said that due to floods, more than 50 per cent of the cotton crop has been damaged, and it would soon create a crisis in the textile industry, rendering a large number of textile and garment workers jobless while also affecting the foreign exchange reserves of the country.

The speakers demanded complete implementation of the international accord in Pakistan to ensure the health and safety of workers. They said that all the international fashion brands should ratify this accord on the pattern of the Bangladesh accord.

They also demanded complete implementation of the health and safety law. They stressed on deciding the cases of the heirs of the Baldia factory fire victims, as well as releasing the stopped pensions to the parents of the victims.

They urged to ensure the provision of a harassment-free environment to female workers. They said that anti-harassment committees comprising women workers should be set up at plant level.

They also said that labour laws should be fully implemented. They added that the international accord should be extended to Pakistan, while all the labour rights under GSP Plus should be fully implemented.

Awaiting justice

Jamaat-e-Islami Karachi chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman said that the families affected by the Baldia factory inferno have been awaiting justice for a decade, but unfortunately, the masterminds, facilitators and those who issued a go-ahead are not only at large but also enjoying governmental support.

The JI leader pleaded to the chief justice of Pakistan to take suo motu notice of the situation in connection with the implementation of the decision of the case.

He said that the family members have been waiting for compensation, while the Sindh government has withheld Rs520 million paid by the German company trying to make amends for the losses suffered.

The JI leader said that the affected families had been expecting punishment for the masterminds and the facilitators of the culprits, but the anti-terrorism court’s decision was not on a par with the expectations.

Rehman said that two condemned culprits were the people at the front in connection with the tragedy, but what about those who ordered and designed the tragedy, and later provided shelter to the culprits.

He also highlighted the issues and shortcomings in the criminal justice system that cause delays, and eventually murder justice. He also stressed the need for reforms in the judicial system.