Compensation becomes a bone of contention between heirs of Baldia factory fire victims, ILO

Families want the $5.15m in a lump sum, ILO wants to distribute it in instalments

KARACHI: The issue of financial compensation for the victims of the Baldia factory fire is at an impasse after the victims' families and International Labour Organisation (ILO) are in a disagreement over the mechanism to disburse the over $5 million among the heirs.

German garment company KiK, which has been accused of overlooking workers' safety arrangements at the ill-fated Ali Enterprises, dubbed the Baldia factory, had paid $5.15 million as long-term compensation to the victims' heirs in late December, 2016 under an agreement signed in Geneva, Switzerland.

The agreement involved the IndustriALL Global Union and Clean Clothes Campaign as representatives of the victims and ILO as the mediator. The German government reportedly played a crucial back door role in bringing KiK to the negotiation table.



The money has now been deposited with the ILO, confirms the organisation's Pakistan director Ingrid Christensen.

The proposal

The ILO has proposed a mechanism through which the victims' families will be paid compensation monthly through the Sindh Employees Social Security Institution (Sessi). The amount will vary depending on the relation of the beneficiary to the deceased.

If the deceased was unmarried, his or her parents will be given around Rs3,800. In case the deceased was married, his or her spouse will be given around Rs12,000. For children, there will be some additional money. This pension is not transferable. If the beneficiary spouse gets married again he or she will no longer be entitled to the sum. Children will only be paid until they reach 18 years of age.



The victims, who are represented by the Ali Enterprises Factory Fire Affectees Association (AEFFAA), oppose this mechanism for they believe they are victims of fraud and that the ILO is capitalising on their money.

They want the disbursement in a lump sum and through the Sindh High Court (SHC) as has happened in the past. For them, the SHC is a more credible institution than Sessi, which has a history of alleged mismanagement and malpractice.

At odds

Ever since the victims' heirs got wind of the ILO's plan for the pension payment mechanism, they held a series of meetings and demonstrations. Meanwhile, the ILO has also made considerable efforts to persuade people to accept its proposal.



ILO's Christensen told The Express Tribune that the proposed arrangement includes periodic disbursement via SESSI to the beneficiaries following instructions from a multi-stakeholder oversight committee with technical assistance and guidance from the ILO. She added that other envisaged elements of the arrangement include counselling on rights and entitlements, a funds management mechanism and a possible high court commission of procedure.

"Sessi is the provincial body mandated to disburse employment injury benefits and is already doing so to most of the victims or their dependants. The disbursement will be guided by the principles in the ILO Convention on Employment Injury Benefits, 1964," she said.

AEFFAA Vice-Chairperson Saeeda Khatoon argued that the ILO kept the victims in the dark and revealed its plan to make payments in instalments in stages later. "When we heard about the agreement in September last year, it gave us hope that some of our sufferings could be diminished by the money that we are getting. But it turned out to be just a dream."



After making the victims wait and fight for more than four years, she said, now the ILO is offering them Rs3,800 a month. "Would that even the pay the electricity bill of a household?" she questioned. "There are people who were hoping to settle their debts, marry off their daughters, buy a home or start a business. But every dream has been shattered," she lamented.

Something that bothers Khatoon is that, during a meeting with the ILO representatives, she was told that if the victims did not accept the instalment proposal then the money would no longer be available. "It was a threat. A direct one. They thought we are underprivileged and uneducated and won't withstand the pressure. They were all wrong. We will fight."

Opinions

"KiK shares the opinion of the ILO and Pakistan Institute of Labour Education and Research that the money should be distributed in instalments rather than [in a] lump sum. The very reason for including the ILO in this process was to help establish a transparent calculation scheme and contribute to strengthening a Pakistani social security system. This is only possible through instalments," said KiK's senior communication consultant, Dorothea Jestadt.



According to her, the money is intended to help support the heirs' daily lives, current and future medical costs now and fund their children's education. "Paying it in instalments makes it more likely that the money is actually available when it is needed in years to come - in contrast to a lump sum payment. We have seen in Bangladesh that distributing the money at once in large sums does not always have positive effects," explained Jestadt.

National Trade Union Federation Deputy General Secretary Nasir Mansoor, on the other hand, opposes the instalment mechanism. "Contrary to the agreement that the compensation will cover the loss of earning, it actually does nothing. It seems a joke. What can a family do with Rs3,800? Most of the victims were unmarried. Can their parents survive on this little sum?" he questioned.