HYDERABAD, Nov 11: All Pakistan Trade Unions Organisation (APTUO), at a divisional conference held here on Saturday, discussed the problems confronting the working class with particular reference to the problems of the employees of local councils, agricultural engineering and water management, Anwar Zeb White Cement Factory and non-payment of wages to the employees.

The secretary of the organization’s Sindh chapter, Mr. Mehboob Ali Qureshi presided over the meeting. Delegates from Mirpurkhas, Sanghar, Nawabshah, Badin, Thatta, Dadu, Kotri and Hyderabad attended the conference.

The meeting criticized the government for its failure to implement the labour laws.

The speakers condemned the contract and daily wage systems and said that workers were being deprived of their legal rights through these systems.

They expressed grave concern over the sky-rocketing prices of consumer goods and rampant unemployment and condemned the non- payment of salaries to the employees of agricultural engineering and water management and their transfer to surplus pool.

The conference demanded that minimum wages of workers should be fixed at Rupees 3,000 per month and urged the government to implement the ILO’s conventions signed by Pakistan.

The meeting regretted that in many organizations, appointment letters had not been issued to employees, the Minimum Wages Act was being violated and workers were not being registered under the social security schemes.

It observed that the services of employees were being terminated without any reason and they were being denied the payment of gratuity and bonus which was their legal right.

The conference strongly opposed the division of Labour department into district level bodies which, according to it, would create a host of problems for workers.

It demanded that the Labour department should not be divided and the problems of the workers should be resolved.