Informal women workers: Govt urged to legislate, implement UN conventions

Lack of data impediment to policy making, says expert.

Speakers at a convention here stressed on the government to make necessary laws and implement international conventions for protection of the rights of women workers engaged in informal sector.

The event, “Towards Recognition and Mobilisation — The State and Status of Home-based and Domestic Women Workers” organised by Uks Research Centre with the support of Aurat Foundation highlighted the role of women workers as constituents of country’s informal economy, said a press release issued on Thursday.

Speaking on the occasion, Development Impact Solutions (DES) Chief Executive Dr Saifullah Chaudhry said that legislation was the responsibility of the government no matter how many international conventions were ratified, and implementation was also the government’s responsibility.

To speed up policy-making and legal rights, the participants need to knock on all doors — from labour departments, to political parties, and to the media – until their demands are met, he added.

The speakers advocated activism on the part of women workers to secure their rights.

Nearly 200 women workers participated in the convention in anticipation of their recognition as “workers” and their corresponding legal rights.

Strengthening Participatory Organisation (SPO) gender specialist Ambreen Ajaib highlighted that lack of data on informal workers as a major impediment in policy-making.

She urged the workers to raise their voice for their rights rather than waiting for the state to come to their rescue.

Capital Development Authority (CDA) Labour Union General Secretary Chaudhry Mohammad Yaseen mentioned that a women wing in the union had been formed recently for formal workers.

He hoped the same for informal workers, to have a formal union and a strong representation.

Sharing women workers demands, Advocate Fauzia Sabeen urged recognition of informal women as ‘workers’, approval of national policy on informal workers the draft of which remains unattended in the National Assembly and formation of union for informal workers and its registration.

She suggested that amendment of definition of ‘workers’ in the existing laws for formal workers could make existing laws applicable to the informal workers.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 16^th, 2015.