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protest tactics. A protest held in May by All Pakistan Clerk Association (APCA)
turned violent in Lahore when their request to meet the chief secretary was
not entertained. Around 2,000 employees tried to storm the Civil Secretariat in
Lahore. They were demanding regularisation of contract employees. Around
200 workers, including women, were arrested. Other protests started as
peaceful assembly of workers but turned violent after the police tried to break
up the protests by using force. Also in May, employees of Technical Education
and Vocational Training Authority (TEVTA) clashed with the police while
protesting for regularisation of their service and better salaries. Several TEVTA
employees were injured as a result of baton-charge, stone pelting and outright
punching. Such incidents demonstrated a lack of imagination by the police to
deal with the protesting workers as well as the frustration felt by the workers
who felt that the only chance they had of getting their problems resolved was
by continuing their protests.
Sacking of employees without prior notice or appropriate compensation
also led to many protests throughout 2012. In August, the Canteen Stores
Department (CSD) fired at least 130 employees by simply delivering termination
letters one day in advance. CSD stores throughout Pakistan remained closed
for two days in protest. The workers turned off the main switch which provided
electricity to the CSD headquarters to force the management to heed their
demands. The workers relented only after the management agreed to review
the sackings.
Another major reason for protests all over Pakistan was the intended
privatisation of several state-owned companies. In October, the Railway
Workers’ Union warned of nationwide protests against the privatisation of
Pakistan Railways (PR). They said that around 53,000 employees had been
laid off while the officers’ expenses had been raised by almost eight percent
over the last 12 years. From July 2011 until June 2012 PR incurred losses of
up to Rs 35 billion in addition to cancellation of several train routes. The PR
was in such dire straits that the government had to provide handouts of Rs 2.5
billion a month to enable it to pay pensions and salaries to present and retired
workers. According to Pakistan Institute of Labour Education and Research
(PILER) and various other experts, this state of affairs was largely the result
of political interference, and inept and corrupt management.
Labour
Bonded labour
The modern form of slavery that is bonded labour is perhaps one of the
most pressing issues in Pakistan. Dedicated efforts by civil society organisations
and unions have ensured that this issue is brought to light and remedies sought.
Despite the fact that more and more labourers in debt bondage are being freed
in the country, the issue is still a vast one. After the agriculture sector in Sindh,
the brick kiln industry in Punjab is the biggest sector where debt bondage
thrives. According to a survey by the Brick Kilns Owners Association, out of
approximately 10,000 brick kilns in Punjab, only 3,836 are registered. According