Protesters ask for non-discriminatory wages, regularisation, amongst others.
PHOTO: FILE
The rally was led by Saba Faisal Edhi of the Edhi Foundation and the HBWWF General Secretary Zehra Khan.
Addressing the rally, Khan said that in Pakistan, the workers of organised labour were being exploited, while workers of the informal sector including home-based workers were toiling in virtually inhumane conditions. She said that the country had an estimated labour force of 68 million, of which 70% belongs to the informal sector, who are deprived of their due rights. More than 12.5 million workers are in the home-based sector, 80% of them are women, she said adding that these workers generate about Rs400 million annually for the national economy.
Saba Faisal Edhi said that the struggle of women workers was praiseworthy. She stressed women to participate in the struggle for their rights and be an active part of social change.
The rally's participants demanded that social security of home-based workers should be ensured including facilities of healthcare, education, jobs and pension. They demanded to be registered with the labour department and their employers and contractors also be registered.
Across the province
The labour unions called for fixing minimum wage at Rs30,000, regularisation of contractual staff, workplace safety, social security and other facilities at a number of rallies held to mark the World Labour Day. The rallies and demonstrations were organised in many big and small towns across the province.
Women workforce calls for the implementation of labour laws
The Pakistan Workers Confederation and All Pakistan Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) Hydro Electric Union took out a rally in Hyderabad. "The labours continue to live their lives in deprivation. They are made to work far more than what they are paid," bewailed Abdul Latif Nizamani, the union's central president while addressing the rally outside Hyderabad Press Club (HPC).
He maintained that the rulers have even failed to implement the existing low wage of Rs16,000. Nizamani demanded implementation of International Labour Organization's conventions.
Historical significance
The International Labour Day or International Worker's Day is observed in many parts of the world to recognise and celebrate the achievements of workers. The day commemorates the Haymarket affair of 1886 that took place in Chicago.
The Haymarket affair began as a peaceful rally on May 4, 1886, at Haymarket Square in support of workers striking in a push for an eight-hour work day. The rally turned violent when a protester threw a bomb at the police and as a result many police officers and workers died. As well as commemorating those who died, International Labour Day celebrates the struggles of labourers and the working classes.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 2nd, 2019.
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