LAHORE, July 20: The Muttahida Labour Federation has demanded autonomy for the Workers Welfare Board (WWB) and nomination of representatives of employers and workers as heads of the Social Security Institution and the Employees Old Age Benefits Institution instead of bureaucrats.

The demands were voiced at a meeting of the federation held here on Friday with Muhammad Omar Saleemi in the chair.

Provincial Secretary-General Muhammad Hanif Ramay said the WWB secretary had been employed on contract and those on deputations were occupying most of the key posts. Similarly, he said the EOBI and social security institution were headed by bureaucrats instead of representatives of workers and employers.

Federation Chairman Muhammad Yaqub criticised the government decision to recover the social security cess from the establishments employing 20 persons.

He said the social security law was applicable to establishments employing 10 persons previously. Thousands of employees had thus been deprived of social security benefits. Mr Yaqoob also criticised the EOBI for changing banks for pension payment. The workers were paid pension through the United Bank Limited (UBL).

They were then directed to receive pension from the Habib Bank Limited (HBL) and now from the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP), he said.