Inspections of garments, chemical factories demanded

Pakistan

Inspections of garments, chemical factories demanded

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Labor leaders urge govt to start health and safety inspections of all chemical, garment factories.

08 November,2012 05:35 pm

Addressing a joint press conference, the labour leaders including Karamat Ali (Pakistan Institute of Labour Education and Research), Noor Mohammad (Port Workers Federation), Mohammad Jafar Khan (Muttahida Labor Federation), Nasir Mansoor (National Trade Union Federation) and others pointed out that the government of Pakistan through Commerce Ministry has provided millions of rupees funds to many garments exporting factories for seeking SA-8000 certification through international organizations.This certification is being considered as a substitute of the inspection and audit by the Labour department.The official inspection is actually banned in Sindh and Punjab on orders of Chief Ministers for many years, they regretted.They pointed out that the Italian company RINA, which had issued Social Audit certificate to Ali Enterprises as well as other certification companies have also issued similar SA-8000 certificates to over 100 exporting companies in Pakistan.They demanded that the government should start audit and inspection of all those companies first to ascertain health and safety facilities available in those industries.Under the Factories Act 1934 the labour departments need to conduct inspection of all the industries to ensure availability of all conducive facilities in these establishments.Karamat Ali said some international organizations working for rights of workers like Clean Clothes Campaign are also forcing the international buyers to fulfill their responsibility and compensate the workers as some of international buyers did in countries like Bangladesh and Turkey.The Clean Clothes Campaign with labour rights organizations of Pakistan has identified a major buyer that was purchasing garments from Ali Enterprises and that buyer is being persuaded to fulfill its responsibility.The actual responsibility lies on the owners of the Ali Enterprise, but those international buyers have some obligations, which needs to be fulfilled, he added.Ali said the labour rights organisations have filed a petition in Sindh High Court on the Baldia factory seeking thorough investigations of the incident and an assurance by the government that such incidents are prevented in the near future.The honorable court has already ordered the government to provide details of the arrangements of health and safety facilities in all such factories within seven days.Moreover the court has also asked the government to provide details of the persons, who have given DNA test samples to ascertain the deaths of those workers whose burnt bodies lying in mortuaries not still not found.Karamat Ali said that the labour organizations have decided to set up their data collection centres near the localities where a large number of workers were living.These centers set up in the offices of labour federations and trade union offices would collect information of those workers who are either missing or their bodies are not identified yet.“We believe dozens of workers are still missing because their bodies were not recovered or feared melted in the high degree of temperature during the fire,” he said adding that all the affected people are requested to approach these centers and provide information.Those workers who have lost their jobs or injured but not received any compensation can contact these centers. He said this data would be provided to the Sindh High Court also.