KARACHI: Female workers enjoy more rights: moot told
KARACHI, March 15: In Pakistan’s labour laws, especially social security scheme, women workers enjoy more rights than their male counterparts. This was stated by Sindh Social Security Commissioner Syed Hashim Raza while speaking at a seminar on ‘Rights of women workers under labour laws’ here on Thursday.
The seminar was organised by Sindh Employees' Social Security Institution (Sessi) to observe the International Women's Day.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr Raza said that the provincial government was taking steps to facilitate women workers of the province. He said that Sindh Labour Minister Mohammad Adil Siddiqui was making efforts for the welfare of women workers and on his instructions labour laws related to women workers were made more effective.
Mr Raza said that 30-acres land was earmarked for women in the Small Industrial Estate near Northern Bypass, Karachi. He said that preference was being given to women and children in welfare schemes of the Sindh Labour Department.
Other speakers including Association of Business, Professional and Agricultural Women chairperson Shamim Kazmi, NILAT Director Ghuyurul Hassan, Uroos Sahar Advocate of LHRLA, and Sessi Director Fatima Hassan said that in Sindh social security protection was provided to more than 60,000 women workers.
They urged women workers to forge unity amongst their ranks for realisation of their due rights and also to adopt simplicity in lifestyle. The speakers deplored that rural women of Sindh were still deprived of their rights.
They urged to set up more medical centres for women, so that they could discuss their health problems with female experts. They said that women workers had special rights and privileges under the laws like Mines Act, Shop Act, and Payment of Wages Act.
They said that housewives, as well as, working women were facing various kinds of harassment in our society. They urged working women to form their own trade unions for protection of their due rights. They said that working women could not get their due rights without awareness, unity and struggle.
A large number of working women and activities of women rights organisations attended the seminar.—PPI
