KARACHI, August 18: Human rights activists, labor leaders, government officials, public representatives, and civil society activists on Thursday held a consultative meeting at a local hotel in Karachi on the need to provide all constitutional and labor rights to sanitary workers. Emphasized because most of them are deprived. Even basic rights including minimum wages, medical facilities, old age benefits, death grants, etc. are not given to them.
The consultation meeting was organized by the Sindh Human Rights Commission, a provincial consultation on the topic of “Safety of health and job security of sanitation workers in Sindh.
Sindh Human Rights Commission Chairperson Hon’ble Justice (Retd) Majda Rizvi emphasized the need to provide automatic cleaning machinery to the sanitary workers as currently they have to work manually which poses a threat to their health and life. Sanitary workers in our neighboring countries are provided with automated machines and other gear for cleaning manholes and sewage lines.
She said that the sanitary workers have no social security or old age benefits, adding that the families of the sanitary workers have no medical facilities and are even deprived of the facilities available under the labor laws.
She said that the commission has prepared a plan to improve the working and living conditions of sanitation workers. She said that the commission has written letters to the Sindh Chief Minister, Labor Minister, Local Government Department, and Provincial Ombudsman regarding issues of sanitation workers such as the regularization of jobs, discrimination, protection from health hazards, compensation against accidents, Implementation of social security, minimum wage, occupational health and safety at work place, etc.
Zulfiqar Ali Shah, chairman of the Sanitary Workers Federation, said that although public sector bodies like municipal corporations provide some facilities to sanitary workers, these workers are deprived of such benefits in the private sector. Duty hours in the field are not fixed and they have to work for twelve to eighteen hours with no overtime. Even during emergency festivals like Eid, they have to work for 24 hours without any additional wages.
On special occasions like Eid, and Ashura, the sanitary workers cannot go to their homes and have to sleep at their workplaces. No special or extra allowance or overtime is provided for extra work. He added that the overtime facility is available only to employees who belong to the categories of technical workers.
He pointed out that the District Municipal Corporations (DMCs) under Sindh Solid Waste Management in the two districts of Karachi, South, and East, have given contracts for garbage collection to some Chinese companies, which hire workers on a daily wage basis or through third-party contracts, salary is given on that basis. Sadly, these workers are not even paid minimum wages and are deprived of other facilities under labor laws.
Ms. Anees Haroon, a member of the National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR), said that there is no data available on the number of sanitary workers in the country. Most of the sanitary face health risks as they are lowered into the manholes without any health and safety kits due to which many cases of their death are reported.
This is a huge violation of human rights, Anis Haroon opined. She further said that Naeem Sadiq, a labor rights activist, had raised his voice for sanitary workers. Now with their efforts, Cantonment Boards and other departments are providing minimum wages to sanitary workers. But the situation is still the same in many private institutions.
International Labor Organization (ILO) representative Razi Mujtaba Haider said that his organization is working for the dignified work of workers. He stressed the need for training on the issue of sanitary workers.
Ashraf Naqvi, former joint director of occupational safety and health in the labor department of Sindh, said that Sindh is the first province to introduce a separate law for occupational safety and health of workers. Under this Act, a Health and Safety Council has been established which includes representatives of workers including sanitary workers. Health and safety standards are being framed under this law.
He said that although this law is being implemented in government institutions, the implementation situation in private sector institutions is not satisfactory. According to him, compensation for the death of every worker is available in this law.
Secretary Labor Department, Government of Sindh Laeq Ahmed said that the government issues minimum wage notification, but it is becoming difficult to implement it in the private sector. He said that labor laws apply to all types of workers including sanitary workers.
Managing Director of Sindh Solid Waste Management Zubair Chana said that it is true that there is no law to pay death compensation to sanitary workers. The only recourse for deceased sanitary workers is the Endowment Fund Act.
He said that private companies have been hired to collect garbage in two districts of Karachi and these companies are paying wages to the sanitary workers according to the minimum wage rules, but they are providing low wages to the workers. Currently, the minimum wage in Sindh is Rs 25,000 per month, but private companies are only paying Rs 550 or 600 per day.
The government has increased the amount paid to these private companies for the wages of sanitary workers to Rs 1000 per day so that they can pay daily wages at the minimum wage rate.
Prabhu Lal Satyani, the regional coordinator of the International Dalit Solidarity Network, said that 80 percent of the sanitary workers should belong to religious minorities. The majority of them also belong to the lower castes. According to him, these workers are discriminated against and face indignity and life threats.
He pointed out that earlier a 6 percent job quota was set for lower caste Pakistanis in government jobs, but in 1989, the quota was scrapped and replaced with a 5 percent job quota for all minorities overall. The quota for these jobs is also not enforced.
All Pakistan Trade Union Organization senior trade union leader Habibuddin Junadi, Sindh Assembly member Ms. Kulsoom Chandio, MPA, Sindh Human Rights Commission member Aslam Sheikh and labor rights activists also spoke on this occasion.
