Pakistan’s unsafe garment industry needs unions

Two years after 259 workers died in an 11 September fire at a factory owned by Ali Enterprises in Karachi, Pakistan, the report of an official commission into the cause and the responsibly for the tragedy remains unpublished by the government. As in Bangladesh, IndustriALL and national unions say increased union membership and collective bargaining rights are crucial steps towards making the Pakistan’s garment industry safe.

Two years after 259 workers died in an 11 September fire at a factory owned by Ali Enterprises in Karachi, Pakistan, the report of an official commission into the cause and the responsibly for the tragedy remains unpublished by the government.

Ali Enterprises was not registered under Pakistan’s factory Act; the building structure was not legally approved by the building authority; the majority of the workers did not have appointment letters; and all worked under an illegal third party contract system with working hours ranging from ten to 14 hours a day without overtime. And as there was no trade union, there was no right to collective bargaining.

After spending five months in jail, the owners of Ali Enterprises were released on bail. Many of the workers and families affected by the fire have not yet received any compensation; others have only received small amounts that do not cover the loss of income for the survivors and their families.

The failure of effective oversight and the denial of justice was brought into sharp relief when it was revealed the factory had received a clean bill of health from an international social auditing company just two weeks before the inferno broke out, certifying that it met all required standards.

More than 600 workers were trapped inside the factory which had no functional fire extinguishing system, windows that were closed and covered with iron rods and locked exits preventing the workers from escaping.

Monika Kemperle, assistant general secretary of the global union for the sector, IndustriALL, said: “Unsafe textile factories are not only found in Bangladesh. The problems are many and complicated in Pakistan and there is no Accord on Building and Fire Safety to set legally binding standards.”

As in Bangladesh, IndustriALL and national unions say increased union membership and collective bargaining rights are crucial steps towards making the Pakistan’s garment industry safe.