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March 8, 2004 : Appeal to all the women of the world Rubina Jamil, president of the Working Women Organisation, secretary of the APTUF (ALL Pakistan Trade Unions Federation), calls to turn May 8, 2004 into a huge mobilisation day for women’s rights, against deregulation, flexibility, deregulated work, for the implementation of the ILO Conventions. Our trade union is especially concerned with the situation of women. Employers prefer to give jobs to women. When they have a choice between man and woman, they rather take women and especially young women, because traditions allow to overexploit women more easily and submit them to employers’ pressures. Women are the first victims of globalisation and privatisation which turn job insecurity into a norm. When they do have a job, they are under very short term employment contracts. These contracts give them none of the rights allowed to Pakistani male workers. For instance, 20,000 young women between 14 and 25 of age are employed in a big centre of the clothing industry in Penjab. Our trade union organised an inquiry in that centre and interviewed many employees who are working in most difficult conditions in these factories which are subsidiaries of English or US multinationals. Women are working from 7 A.M. to 12 P.M. Hygiene and security at work are not taken care of. Sanitary facilities are few, and there is no place for dining or resting. Each woman has to produce each day a quota of clothes and cannot leave work before reaching it. Theoretically, the minimum wage in Pakistan is 43 dollars a month. But women are paid 35 to 40 dollars a month. The management imposes unpaid overtime hours. If a woman take a day of unpaid leave, she is laid off the day after. These women are generally sewing garments in badly lit shops, which negative consequences for their eyesight. There are many professional illnesses : eyesight, respiratory illnesses because of a lack of air circulation, circulatory diseases because they are working standing up for 14 hours without break. All foremen are male, and practice sexual harassment. If women resist, part of their wages is withheld. But this is not exceptional. Another example denounced by our trade union is that of the SAGA firm, subsidiary for several multinationals, which produces football and chirurgical equipment. An agreement between the APEC and the ILO concerning this firm refers to the ILO Charters of fundamental rights. But the immediate effect of this agreement is a growing transfer towards home working, meaning a higher degree in exploitation. The main part of this work consists in stitching balls. This is a very badly paid job. This concerns also the production of shoes, electric wires, various food products. There is always anintermediary between the women working at home and the bosses. These intermediaries get a profit share out of the women’s wages: it is often higher than what these women earn. Faisalabad is called the Manchester of Pakistan. Over 2,000 women are working in this centre. Home working often means that the whole family is working under the supervision of the mother. In the brickyards industry, 60 % of the labour force are women. In the Penjab region, 10,000 women are working in this sector without being registered as such. When trade unionists go to these brickyards, they meet women working there in full sun blaze, without any protection. They have no right to maternity leave and have to resume work the day after the birth of their child. The bosses there are often also the mayor of the town, who sends himself for the police forces each time there is trouble. These women are working in slavery conditions. there is a very high percentage of rapes, perpetrated by the bosses as well as by the policemen. In Karachi, a majority of women are working in the pharmaceutical industry. These women are “lucky” to work in these factories which are shown as “models”, “showcases” by big industrial groups which organised tours in these places. But the women are all on short term contracts. The rate at which they join trade union is very low. A perpetual pressure is being exerted on families: if they unionise, they will be laid off… Generally, there is an agreement between the families and the bosses to give the women’s wages directly to the family head. Building a trade union is difficult; Moreover, I am almost the only woman in the leadership circles of the trade union. But only women can organise other women. they are confronted to the full pressure of a patriarchal society. A lot of trade union leaders consider that a woman should not be leader of a trade union. A crucial issue for unionisation is the building of kindergartens allowing women to have free time for trade union activity and access to training. But training programs are organised by men and nothing is planned for women who therefore cannot have access to leadership. APTUF’s orientation is precisely to allow women to benefit from training programs, and therefore have access to leadership positions. In Penjab, there are few women in unions, because most women work in the informal sector. Our activists are living in various neighbourhoods, we organise home working women on this basis. In these meetings, we explain what is globalisation, its consequences such as informal jobs, development of subsidiary firms by the multinationals. We discuss the international situation and the situation in Pakistan, war, and why women have to organise around a platform for their own defence. We also talk about contraception, pregnancy and family planning. We organise the fight against women illiteracy. Women learn to write and read, but at the same time we organise debates, theatre plays to help develop their political consciousness. The women participating in these courses are WWO members and follow all our activities, rallies, meetings, judiciary assistance. We also organise meetings at a national level, and also at an international level,as we invite women who are members of organisations similar to ours in other countries. We have 3500 members in Penjab. We try to organise women in relation with other Asian organisations. For instance at the occasion of the Asian Conference in Mumbai last December, we concluded that we should join women efforts throughout the continent for peace against war, against communitarian confrontations, for democracy. Women always held an important role in the fight against war and in favour of peace; We organised together last year the emergency conference against war and exploitation with the ILC at the eve of the war against the Iraqi people, and launched an appeal to turn March 8, 2003 into a mobilisation day “No war, stop the genocide against the Iraqi people, for peace and democracy, for social justice, for the defence of women workers’ rights.” As the “total war” against all peoples is being deepened this year, I call upon you to strengthen our unity. I propose to establish in all countries the consequences for women of the policies of the IMF, World bank, international institutions, the European Union, the ALCA, NAFTA, ASDEAD, NEPAD. Let’s make of March 8, 2004 a mobilisation day Against war, for democracy, against communitarianist confrontations, for peace and national sovereignty. In support of the delegation which will go to Geneva on the coming March 15 to defend “labour rights in Iraq”, for the rights of working women. Let us fight for the ratification and implementation of the ILO conventions which are in all countries as in my own, a lever for imposing rights and guarantees for women workers and all workers. For the defence of labour rights against globalisation, multinationals, privatisation, deregulation. The ILC Women Workers Commission ask you to answer this appeal. It will publish all the contributions provided for an inquiry on the working and living conditions of women as asked by Rubina Jamil.
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Open World Conference of Workers