Employers Federation of Pakistan, which is the apex body of industries, is focusing on the socioeconomic recovery of Pakistan by advising, guiding and planning programs for the industrialists as well as maintaining a social dialogue with the workers. Pakistan has faced, and is facing, three key contextual influences, that are, COVID, climate change, and conflicts”. Majyd Aziz, Former President EFP, and Rabiya Anwer, Assistant Secretary General EFP, stated this in their presentation at the annual AOTS/EO Joint Study Workshop on “Global Challenges for Labor Environment 2023 –How to improve Industrial Relations” organized in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, by the Association of Overseas Technical Cooperation and Sustainable Partnerships of Japan.
The EFP team, while highlighting the economic scenario, said that the slower economic growth would reflect damages and disruptions caused by the catastrophic floods in 2022, a tight monetary stance by the State Bank, high inflation, and a less conducive global environment. The negative impact would seriously affect all segments of society especially the workers and SMEs. They added that the Pandemic disrupted major economic sectors, particularly in the services sector. Pakistan’s economic progress towards sustainable social, socioeconomic, and environmental development stalled including poverty alleviation as a result of job loss, living within the real wages, drastic reduction in the flow of remittances from overseas workers, and cutting down of social safety net programs”.
The EFP team further added that Pakistan is among the ten most vulnerable countries due to climate change. The country suffered and still suffers from heat waves, drought, and the devastation caused by the floods that displaced 35 million people, massively destroyed agriculture, resulted in many deaths, and caused nearly $18-20 billion overall loss to the nation.
The team disclosed that despite all these, EFP, along with other stakeholders, is increasing focus on environmentally sustainable economy through a comprehensive policy approach to stimulate clean and green environment, enhancing skills and employability, and facilitating innovative initiatives to address the challenges. EFP is placing a major emphasis on Occupational Safety and Health at the workplace. This is done through sensitization of employers and workers, advocating pragmatic legislation on environment, health and labor laws, as well as mentoring all to achieve UN Sustainable Development Goals 2030.
The EFP team further informed that EFP is also promoting social protection and motivation of independent labor service providers, gig workers, as well as home-based workers, to enter into the formal economy since these are another dimensions in the changing employment pattern. To ascertain the needs of the SME sector, EFP launched the EFP SMEs Business Development Support Services Needs Survey. Another initiative was EFP Women Empowerment through Employment and Entrepreneurship. EFP has also introduced the first-ever Pakistan Business and Disability Network with the mandate to bring employers together for promoting inclusion and decent work for persons with disabilities. Moreover, EFP is promoting the ratification of ILO Convention 190, which is Harassment and Violence at the Workplace.
Majyd Aziz and Rabiya Anwer also strongly urged the Employers to develop strategic partnerships so that commonality of views, positions, and actions are coordinated and the best practices disseminated in order to present a formidable stance to face all challenges to the labor environment in the coming future.
