LAHORE, Feb 27: Punjab Labour Welfare director Aslam Hayat has said that the provincial government is taking steps for elimination of forced labour with the help of the district governments.

Speaking at a conference on forced labour eradication at the Bakhtiar Labour Hall here on Wednesday with Pakistan Workers Federation president Chaudhry Talib Nawaz in the chair, he said the government was registering the brick kiln workers for providing social security to them in view of the complaints that they were kept under detention and forced to work without wages.

He said employers and workers organisations should join hands for elimination of bonded labour. Pakistan Workers Federation secretary-general Khurshid Ahmed said the government should take steps for elimination of forced labour in accordance with the ILO conventions.

Brick kilns should be registered under Factories Act for providing social security cover to workers.