KARACHI, May 10: Speakers at a workshop urged the government to ensure that employers implemented working conditions defined as decent work.

The three-day workshop on ‘decent work’, which concluded here on Saturday, was organized jointly by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and All Pakistan Federation of Labour (APFOL).

The speakers suggested launching of a campaign on awareness about decent work so that employers and employees could realize each others’ rights and duties. They called for a tripartite conference to discuss the subject issue.

They demanded that labour laws be updated so that the problems being faced by workers today could be resolved effectively.

The speakers said that term ‘decent work’ enfolds various principles including, right to collective bargaining, elimination of child labour, equal opportunities for men and women, social security, old-age benefits and medical facilities.

They proposed holding of awareness programmes, particularly in rural areas where majority of workers resided.

They were of the view that all stakeholders would have to change their negative attitude to counter the adverse effects of globalization. They said that economic priorities would have to be restructured and obsolete laws revised to streamline them in accordance with new principles and changed atmosphere.

In order to ensure implementation of the principles of decent work, fundamental changes would have to be introduced in the economic system, they opined.

Describing ‘decent work’ as a shield to protect rights of workers from the effects of globalization, the speakers said that in the next few years, it would be difficult to block imports to protect local industry.

They stressed that both employers and employees would have to play their due role in ensuring quality and competitive prices of their products.

Dr Basharat of ILO, Ahsanullah Khan and U. R. Usmani of the Workers Employers Bilateral Council of Pakistan, Joint Labour Director C. L. Nankani, Dr Moeen Qureshi, Nadir Yousufzai, Fasihul Karim Siddiqui, Khalil-ur-Rehman of the APFOL and others were among those spoke at the workshop.