NA resolution on workplace harassment

Reaffirms protection against all forms of gender-based discrimination

ISLAMABAD:

The National Assembly on Friday unanimously passed a resolution reaffirming parliament's commitment to protecting the dignity, equality and rights of every individual against all forms of workplace harassment and gender-based discrimination.

Member of the National Assembly and Secretary of the Women's Parliamentary Caucus (WPC), Dr Shahida Rehmani, moved the resolution in the House.

The resolution underscores that workplace harassment is not limited to conduct of a sexual nature but may also manifest itself through gender-based discrimination, intimidation, humiliation, degrading treatment, hostile behaviour and misuse of authority, whether sexual or non-sexual in nature.

It reaffirms the legislative intent and protections enshrined in the Protection against Harassment of Women at the Workplace Act, 2010, as amended in 2022, which expressly recognises discrimination on the basis of gender, whether sexual or non-sexual, within the statutory framework of harassment.

The resolution further emphasises that the absence of a sexual advance or demand does not diminish the seriousness of gender-based harassment or discrimination. It states that the dignity of individuals cannot be subjected to narrow distinctions between different forms of harassment and that all conduct falling within the scope of the law must be addressed with equal seriousness, fairness and accountability.

Through this resolution, the National Assembly has called upon the Federal Government and all concerned institutions to ensure the effective implementation of existing legislation in its entirety, ensuring that no individual is deprived of statutory protection merely because the reported harassment or gender-based discrimination is non-sexual in nature.

The initiative also reinforces the broader commitment of the Women's Parliamentary Caucus to ensuring that workplaces across Pakistan remain free from harassment, intimidation, humiliation and discrimination.

The resolution reaffirmed that a workplace free from harassment, humiliation and gender-based discrimination is not a privilege but a fundamental requirement of human dignity, equality and justice.

The 2010 Act describes harassment as "any unwelcome sexual advance, request for sexual favours or other verbal or written communication or physical conduct of a sexual nature or sexually demeaning attitudes, causing interference with work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, or the attempt to punish the complainant for refusal to comply to such a request or is made a condition for employment".