PAKISTAN: Illegal ban of trade unions by the government 

[NOTICE: The AHRC have developed a new automatic letter-sending system using the “button” below. However, in this appeal, we could not include e-mail addresses of some of the Pakistan authorities. We encourage you to send your appeal letters via fax or post to those people. Fax numbers and postal addresses of the Pakistan authorities are attached below with this appeal. Thank you.] URGENT ACTION

PAKISTAN: Repression of union activities; denial of freedom of association and labour rights
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission has received information that the Ministry of Defence Production has illegally banned the trade unions of an industrial corporation named Karahi Shipyard and Engineering Works (KSEW) in Karachi city, Sindh province, Pakistan on 26 August 2006. The cancellation order of the registration of the concerned trade unions was imposed without lawful procedures. This action directly affects about 3,000 workers.

The trade unions in a huge industrial corporation named Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works (KSEW) were have been illegally banned by the Registrar of Trade Unions (RTU) under the Sindh provincial government through an order dated 26 August 2006. The Sindh provincial government reportedly took this action at the behest of the federal minister of defence production.

This ban has been imposed while the management of the KSEW was having conciliation meetings with a labour union, the sole collective bargaining agency of the KSEW, on the charter of demands which has been pending before the ministry of defence production since 2003. According to the Industrial Relations Ordinance 2002 (IRO 2002), labour unions can submit their charter of demands that describes specific demands of employees, to the company administration every two years and both sides begin negotiations to come to an agreement on the charter. Previously, as the management and the trade unions of the KSEW could come to an agreement on the charter, according to labour law procedures, the matter was referred to the labour department under the ministry of defence production in 2003.

Simultaneously, the Registrar of Trade Unions (RTU) was having a series of conciliation meetings with different trade unions of the KSEW to discuss the process of the coming referendum for the assertion of a collective bargaining agency (CBA), which is required to be held every two years of the term according to labour law. The meeting began on 1 August 2006 and continued at the RTU’s office until the third week of August, 2006.

While the meetings were ongoing, on August 5, the Ministry of Defence Production of the federal government of Pakistan issued a notification that the KSEW, which was a private corporation, became “a public limited company”.  However, this notification did not mention anything about the ban on trade union activities and the RTU conducted the meetings with trade unions of the KSEW.

But on August 26, the RTU suddenly banned the trade unions of the KSEW and halted the meetings with the unions, saying that “in light of the notification dated 5 August 2006 that was issued by the Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Defence Production of the federal government of Pakistan, the trade unions of KSEW ceased to exist till further order”. This action directly affected about 3,000 workers.

The cancellation of registration of trade unions of KSEW is a gross violation of Constitution of Pakistan and supplemental labour laws that guarantees labour rights and the freedom of association. According to Article 17 of the Constitution of Pakistan, “every citizen has the right to join an association/union.” Clause 3 of section 12 of IRO 2002 also mentions, “The registrar has power to cancel the registration of a trade union when after holding such enquiry as he deems fit, he finds that such trade union has dissolved itself or as ceased to exist.”

However, as far as we confirmed, the RTU did not issue any notice to the trade unions of the KSEW before cancellation of their registrations. Therefore, the said cancellation order was passed without any lawful procedures and therefore gives no lawful authority to the order. This is also against the freedom of association, the right to association and the right to collective bargaining of the workers that are pertained in ILO convention Nos. 87 and 98.

BACKGROUND INFORMAITON:

The Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works (KSEW) is registered under the Factories Act of 1934. This establishment is not exclusively connected with the defence productions but its major customers (almost 80%) are the sugar mills, foundries, rolling mills and shipping companies belonging to the private sector. It has been running a training centre where provides skill training programme on payment in the trade including welding, fabrication, electrician, pipe fitter, mechanical fitter. Since the company’s establishment, trade unions were set up and were conducting union activities until the ban was enforced.

Since the military took over the government through a coup in 1999, the Pakistan government has not allowed the smooth functioning of trade unionism and has not entered into any agreements regarding increases in wages and other benefits of workers.

Beside this, the Management of the KSEW has not given the government announced allowances (in shape of dearness allowance) to the workers from time to time. Also, the military government has retrenched about 7000 workers in different periods of seven years and employing workers purely on daily wages and contracts.

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write to the relevant government authorities listed below and express your concern about this serious case of abolishing trade unions and depriving the workers and employees of their basic rights of association and bargaining agency. Also urge them to restore the trade union activities in the Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works.

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