Consultations on Labour Protection Policy in concluding phase

The consultative process initiated by the Ministry of Labour, Manpower and Overseas Pakistanis (MoLM&OP) in collaboration with the Small and Medium Enterprise Development Authority (Smeda), on Labour Protection Policy would enter into the concluding phase after the consultative workshop to be held here on Wednesday October 12.
This was disclosed by Mohammad Ahsan Akhtar Malik, Joint Secretary, MoLM&OP at a press conference arranged by Smeda here on Tuesday. Raja Faizul Hassan Faiz, Central Labour Advisor, Dr Aliya Khan, Associate Professor, Quid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Alamgir Chaudhry, Provincial Chief, Smeda-Punjab and Jameel Ahmed Afaqi, General Manager Policy Planning Department of Smeda were also present on this occasion.
Ahsan Malik maintained that Government of Pakistan was committed to bringing out a Labour Protection Policy under ILO's recent conventions and the Labour Policy 2002.
However, we are trying our best to have a national consensus on the draft policy through consultative process at the provincial as well as federal level, he said adding that a process of consultation with provinces had been initiated in this regard through a series of four provincial workshops. He informed that the workshop in Karachi, Quetta and Peshawar were held on September 27, October 4 and October 8, respectively.
The workshop to be held at Lahore on Wednesday is the last episode of provincial consultation on Labour Protection Policy, which would be followed by a concluding workshop in the Federal Capital next week, he said. He hoped that the workshop to be held at Islamabad would give the policy recommendations a final touch for onward submission to the federal cabinet.
Raja Faizul Hassan Faiz, Central Labour Advisor while expressing his views on this occasion said that the stakeholders from employees, employers and government circles actively participated in the consultative workshop with a valuable contribution of their suggestions.
He assured to include all useful recommendations in the final policy document. He said that ongoing round of consultative workshops in the four provinces has helped develop a national consensus on the policy recommendations.
Replying various questions on this occasion, Ahsan Akhtar Malik and Raja Faizul Hassan Faiz said that amendment permitting taking work from a labour for 12-hours daily including three hours of over-time and one hour rest had been tabled in the parliament for approval.
Likewise, earlier it was not permitted to take work from female workers after sunset, but it was creating problems for industrial sector especially the garments sector. Now they could take work from female staff in two shifts up to 10:00 pm provided the employer provides pick and drop service to lady workers. They said that they intend to amend IRO to set up Labour tribunal to provide speedy justice to workers in case of any injustice.