Moot demands all labour rights for sanitary workers

KARACHI: The human rights activists, labour leaders, government officers, public representatives and civil society campaigners at a consultation here on Thursday underlined the need to provide all the constitutional and labour rights to the sanitary workers as most of them are deprived of even fundamental rights including minimum wages, leaves, medical facilities, old-age benefits and death grants etc.

The provincial consultation “on Health Safety and Job Security of Sanitation Workers in Sindh” was organized by Sindh Human Rights Commission (SHRC) at a local hotel demanded to provide machines and health and safety kits for the janitor staff in both the public and private sector civic bodies. They deplored the sanitary workers who lose their lives during cleaning gutters and manholes due to the non-provision of health and safety kits, required for such special work.

Chairperson of SHRC Justice (Retired) Majida Razvi underlined the need to provide mechanized cleaning machinery to sanitary workers as currently, they have to work manually which poses a threat to their health and lives. In our neighbouring countries, sanitary workers are provided with automated machines and gear for cleaning manholes and sewerage lines.

The sanitary workers don’t have any protection, social security or old age benefits she said adding that families of sanitary workers don’t have any medical facilities even those available under the labour laws. SHRC has introduced a set of concerted interventions including the formulation of a plan in improving the working and living conditions of sanitation workers. She said that the Commission has written letters to the Sindh Chief Minister, Minister of Labour, Department of Local Government and provincial ombudsman with recommendations to address issues of sanitation workers such as job regularization, protection against discriminatory practices and health hazards, compensation against accidents, social security, minimum wage, implementation of occupational health and safety at workplace etc.

Zulfiqar Ali Shah, Chairman of the Sanitary Workers Federation said even though the public sector organisations like Municipal corporations provide some facilities to sanitary workers, they are deprived of such benefits in the private sector. No duty hours are fixed in the field, even during emergency days like Eid they have to work for 16-18 hours without any extra wages. On special events like Eid or Ashura sanitary workers are unable to go to their homes and have to sleep at the workplaces. No special or extra allowance or over\-time is provided for extra work.

Overtime facility is available to only those employees who are included in the technical worker’s categories, he added. In Karachi, he pointed out that the District Municipal Corporations (DMCs) of two districts South and East Sindh Solid Waste Management have awarded contracts to Chinese companies, which are hiring workers on a daily wage basis third-party contract basis. These workers are not paid even the minimum wage and are deprived of all facilities under labour laws.

Many workers who sustain injuries in accidents are not provided with any medical facilities. Those who lose their lives are not provided death grants or any financial support to their families. He underlined the need for law-making for sanitary workers as they are not covered under the existing labour laws.

Ms Anis Haroon, a Member of, the National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR) said no data about the size of sanitary workers are available in the country. Most Kundimen are facing the danger of health as they are sent into manholes without any health and safety kits and many incidents of deaths are reported.

“It is a big human rights violation,” said that adding that a labour rights activist Naeems Sadiq had raised the voice for sanitary workers. “Now due to his efforts, Cantonment Boards and other departments are now providing minimum wages to sanitary workers. But the situation in the private sector is still the same,” she remarked.

Razi Mujtaba Haider, a representative of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) said that his organisation is working for decent work of workers. He underlined the need for training on the issue of sanitary workers.

Ashraf Naqvi, a former Joint Director for Occupational Safety and Health at Sindh Labour Department said that Sindh was the first province which introduced a separate law for the Occupational Safety and Health of workers. The laws cover all types of labour including sanitary workers.

Under the law, an OSH Council has been established which has representatives of workers as well. Although the law is being implemented, now standards for safety and health are being made, he added. According to him, death compensation is also available in the OSH law.

Laeeq Ahmed, Secretary of the Labour Department, Government of Sindh said that government notifies minimum wages, but it is difficult to implement in the private sector. He said labour laws apply to all kinds of workers including sanitary workers. Zubair Channa, Managing Director of Sindh Solid Waste Management said that it is correct that no law is available for payment of death compensation to sanitary workers. The only provision available for the deceased sanitary workers is Endowment Fund.

According to him, the SSWMG has hired private companies for garbage collection in two districts of Karachi and these companies are paid sanitary workers wages according to minimum wages laws, that is, Rs. 25,000 per month, but those companies are paying just Rs. 550 to 600 as daily wages to the wormers.

Now the government has enhanced the amount for sanitary workers’ wages to Rs 1,000 per day so they can get daily wages at the rate of minimum wages, he remarked. Pirbhu Satiyani, Regional Expert, International Dalits Solidarity Network (IDSN) said that most sanitary workers are from religious minority communities especially those belonging to scheduled castes. According to him, they are facing discrimination, dishonour and death threats.

He pointed out that earlier there was six per cent job quota was fixed in government jobs for scheduled castes, but in 1989, this quota was abolished and changed into a total 5 per cent job quota for all minorities. Even those job quota is not implemented. Senior trade union leader Habibuddin Junaidi of All Pakistan Trade Union Organization, representative of KMC Sanitary Workers, Ms Kalsoom Chandio, MPA, Aslam Shaikh, a Member of SHRC and workers’ rights activists also spoke on the occasion.