HYDERABAD: A two-day workshop on climate change adaptation and occupational health safety, organized by the Sindh Community Foundation (SCF) in collaboration with Feed the Minds, underscored the critical need for labor rights protection for women cotton workers in agriculture.

Attended by 40 women from 20 villages in Matiari district, the workshop focused on the adverse impacts of climate change on health, productivity, and livelihoods, while also addressing the importance of labor rights and occupational safety.

The sessions, led by the experts of climate change and labor rights including Jameela Nawaz, Zaubdia Turk, Ramsha Kalhoro, and Javed Hussain, explored the effects of climate change on women in agriculture, highlighting the principles of decent work, including equitable working conditions, social dialogue, social protection, and fair wages.

Javed Hussain, Executive Director of SCF, pointed out that women working in agriculture are particularly vulnerable to climate-related incidents such as rising temperatures and floods, which have significantly diminished their livelihoods and labor productivity. He cited temperatures reaching 49°C, creating unbearable working conditions, and stressed that the Occupational Safety and Health Act, 2017, is not being implemented in the agricultural sector. “Climate change is a serious threat to both cotton crops and the workers engaged in cotton production,” he added.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024