KARACHI – There is a strong need for harmonization of labor laws in all four provinces and that a National Conference will be convened and hosted by Sindh Government with the active support of the Employers Federation of Pakistan as well as tripartite representatives from all provinces. A focused agenda would be discussed, deliberated and consensus achieved from this Conference.
This was agreed in a meeting of a three-member EFP Delegation, consisting of Acting President Zaki Ahmed Khan, Past President Khawaja Muhammad Nauman, and Secretary-General Fasihul Karim Siddiqi with Sindh Labor Minister Saeed Ghani and Labor Secretary Abdul Rasheed Solangi.
The meeting finalized the following agenda for the National Conference.
1. Application of Worker Welfare Laws such as Social Security, EOBI, Workers Profit Participation, Workers Welfare Fund, Education Cess, and consolidation of all Labor Welfare Laws under one umbrella
2. Improving, reforming, and adopting a uniform Labor Inspection System
3. Simplification and codification of all labor laws in a single code to be adopted by all Provinces
4. Uniform application of Labor Laws on Trans-provincial companies
5. Amendment in Industrial Relations Act 2012 in order to check the mushroom growth of trade unions registered under the National Industrial Relations Commission and to structure the role of NIRC in the Provinces
The EFP Delegation appreciated the lead taken by the Sindh Government in legislating the Sindh Occupational Safety and Health Act in consultation with the Tripartite Stakeholders and hoped that the rules for implementation of the OSH Act would be finalized soon. In this connection, they informed the Minister that EFP would be holding its International OSH Conference on 28 April 2020 where for the first time International speakers and experts would impart training in best global practices during a two-day OSH Training Conference. They proposed that Department of Labor of Government of Sindh should agree to be the co-host of this mega event.
The EFP Delegation informed that a tripartite sub-committee of Sindh Tripartite Labor Standing Committee has being meeting regularly to review and suggest amendments by consensus for the following eight labor laws as follows:
1. The Sindh Industrial Relations Act 2013
2. The Sindh Factories Act
3. The Sindh Terms and Establishment (Standing Orders Act) 2015
4. The Sindh Shops and Commercial Establishment Act 2015
5. Sindh Workers Compensation Act 2015
6. The Sindh Companies Profits (Workers’ Participation) Act, 2015
7. The Sindh Payment of Wages Act 2015
8. Sindh Employee Old Age Benefit Act 2014
Mr. Saeed Ghani in his remarks paid glowing tributes to the Employers Federation of Pakistan and stated that EFP has always taken the lead in ensuring industrial peace, presenting pragmatic and innovative proposals and ideas to ensure a healthy and harmonious tripartite system not only in Sindh but all over Pakistan. Moreover, he added, EFP has been now acclaimed as the real apex body of manufacturers and has time and again proven its commitment to the welfare of workers as well as protecting the interests of the employers.
Mr. Zaki Ahmed Khan stated that it is the avowed policy of the Board of Directors of EFP to strive for an enlightened and productive relationship with the workers, government, ILO, and academia. He assured the Minister of the total support of EFP in all industrial relations matters and the process of industrialization and employment generation.
