November 05, 2007	Monday	Shawwal 23, 1428

EMPLOYMENT is universally recognised as the fundamental right of the people. Over the past sixty years, not much efforts have gone to provide sufficient employment. This is also true for the incumbent regime.

But the outgoing PML(Q) coalition government is now drafting a new national employment policy before entering into the election fray with hopes for winning a second term - albeit on the strength of its ‘performance’.

The draft of the policy has been finalised by the Policy Planning Cell of the Ministry of Labour and Manpower. However, some people in the government believe that like many other thorny issues, the new employment policy would also be left for the new elected government. The caretaker government, it was expected, could also look into it.

“But from our side, every thing is ready to implement the new employment policy in letter and in spirit”, the chairman of the Policy Planning Cell, Dr Sabur Ghayur, told Dawn.

The outgoing government would take a decision on the new employment policy shortly after holding a seminar participated by all the stakeholders, including the provinces.

“We have sought the comments of the provincial governments about the policy which is expected to be finalised very soon. Their views could be incorporated in the final policy to be approved by the cabinet, he added.

Dr. Ghayur claimed that unemployment had gone down from 8.3 per cent to 5.9 per cent which could be further reduced provided his recommendations were followed.

Asked about the recommendations, he said employment would be made the central point in the economic and social policy making and that the emphasis was on both the quality and quantity of job generated in the economy.

”Then favourable conditions will have to be created particularly for the growth of the private sector in small and medium enterprises and other labour absorbing sectors”, he said.

The policy document had been developed on the basis of clear understanding of twin challenges. Indeed, the first challenge was none else than the creation of work opportunities to a level that was at least commensurate with absorbing fresh entrants into labour market. The new entrants into the labour market had currently been estimated at over one million, he added.

He shared with Dawn the broad policy objectives and recommendations of his cell about the new employment policy according to which unemployment and under-employment was quite pervasive; the under-utilised labour accounts for a fifth of the workforce. Lesser remuneration and low productive work currently affects a significant proportion of the employed. Poor working conditions in significant workplaces were also not uncommon.

Dr Ghayur said his cell had proposed employment opportunities in all major sectors of the economy especially agriculture, engineering and industry. He said recommendations relating to textile sector, leather industry, apparel industry, fisheries, livestock, chemical industries, human resource development, pharmaceutical industry, surgical instrument, medicines and appliances industry, machine tools, moulds and dies industry, electric fan industry, mining and quarrying, marble, gemstones and food industries were proposed.

Former director of the Pakistan Institute of Development Economists (PIDE), Dr A. R. Kamal, when contacted, said that unemployment was a very important issue which unfortunately was not taken up seriously by successive governments. He did not believe that unemployment had gone down to 5.9 per cent.

“Estimates of unpaid family helpers have increased but not the actual unemployment rate”, he said. The need of the hour, he said, was to stop the growth in the informal sector. He said that sectors like telecommunications and automobile did not offer many opportunities for employment. We need to bring growth in sectors like garments to reduce unemployment across Pakistan”, Dr Kamal dded.

According to the draft report, Pakistan’s informal sector has grown at an unprecedented pace over the years and today 72.9 per cent of the non-agriculture workforce is employed by this sector.

There has been 20 per cent plus growth in the informal sector and the issue has become a matter of great concern, with government considering a proposal to bring the informal sector in the mainstream through its “decent work” programme.

“According to a conservative estimates, out of $140 billion economy, $32 billion plus is in the informal sector, providing a huge opportunity to its businessmen to evade taxes every year”, the draft report said.

About 32 per cent workforce is in the wholesale and retail business, 21 per cent in the manufacture sector, 17.5 per cent in community and social and personnel sector, 13.8 per cent in construction and 11.1 per cent in the transport sector. This included both in urban and rural areas.

The informal sector consists of small units producing goods or services with the primary objective of generating employment and incomes to the families engaged in these activities. Informal activities have often been characterised by low levels of capital, skills, access to organised markets and technologies; low and unstable incomes and poor and unpredictable working conditions. Such activities are often outside the scope and purview of the official statistical enumeration and government regulations as well as beyond formal system of social protection.

The units operating in the informal sector are highly labour intensive but employment is mostly casual; based on kinship, personal relations rather than contractual arrangements ensuring protection. The informal sector activities depend, to a large extent, on the local and regional demand.

The huge and increasing size of the informal sector is an area of serious concern.

Despite the growing size, the informal sector continues to be largely “invisible” and “neglected”. Sufficient information is lacking concerning employment pattern, the nature and extent of its activities and characteristics of its participants which leads to an absence of information on region-trade-and activity-specific employment potential.

The focus should be on productive and decent employment creation rather than low productivity and marginalised jobs that largely create a pool of working poor.

Also, more than three fourths of the employees’ income is even less than Rs1,500. More than quarter of males and two thirds of females have monthly income of less than Rs2,500. The regional analysis shows that a higher proportion of females earn less than minimum wage in both urban and rural areas as compared to males. “This is due to working in the informal sector where there no checks and balances and where the government seems to be failing in its duty”, the official admitted

The country needed skilled labour which should be accounted for in the formal sector properly. The access to high quality goods at lower prices due to globalisation has brought changes in the structures of production. The easier growth options are no more available and penetration in the global market is critically linked with the skills and capabilities of the workforce.

Literacy level is as low as 52 per cent. The educational distribution of literates shows that 35 per cent are below matriculation level, 10 per cent are matriculates and 4.1 per cent have higher secondary certificates. The degree holders account for only a small (3.8 per cent) proportion.