Labour in a changing world

“The times, they are a-changin,” is a 1964 iconic song by legendary Bob Dylan. Times have even changed and evolved in the world of work, even in the Pakistani industrial relations ecosystem.

Gone are the days when ego-centric labour leaders wielded influence on members, energising them with demagoguery and rabble-rousing. Gone are the days when they would exert their self-generated importance to browbeat and intimidate employers. Within a few years, they faded away in the sunset. They rarely developed their successors. Narcissism prevailed over pragmatism.

A new cadre of labour leaders gradually came to the fore, but by that time the worker movement had lost steam, and the number of labour unions across the country had substantially declined; today, only about one per cent of enterprises have registered unions.

This new cadre faced, and is still facing, a difficult task in motivating workers to form unions and display brotherhood. They are reasonably successful in stimulating unions in the public sector but have to move boulders, cross turbulent seas, and remove bottlenecks to achieve entry into targeted individual enterprises.

The Pakistan United Workers Federation was formed through the merger of ten moderate labour federations. PUWF is the largest and represents over one million workers in 637 unions. The next large federations are the National Labour Federation and the Pakistan Central Mines Workers Federation.

However, most workers’ federations lack the critical mass to build a movement to register unions and have their voices heard in the corridors of power. Although major political parties do have their wings or bureaus, the latter seldom have a formidable say in the parties’ policies.

There are labour leaders who are still in a time warp. Their speeches revolve around three or four issues that are ignored by employers and, to some extent, by the government. Their favourite is the issuance of appointment letters for workers because, in their opinion, an appointment letter guarantees job security, even though any worker who is underperforming, displays signs of hostility, or is a chronic absentee will soon be chucked out. Even if that worker knocks at the portals of the courts and even if reinstated, that worker will undoubtedly face resistance from management.

Another beef against employers, and this is a genuine complaint, is that the prescribed minimum wage is not given to most of the workers. The minimum wage for unskilled workers provides an essential floor of protection, helps prevent exploitation, and supports the welfare of vulnerable workers.

The difficulty for employers arises when the Minimum Wage Board sets wages for semi-skilled and skilled workers, since it may not be in the broader interest of industry and labour market dynamics.

Skills, productivity, experience, specialisation, market demand, and sectoral requirements generally determine wages of semi-skilled and skilled workers. Such wages are more appropriately regulated through market mechanisms, collective bargaining, and enterprise-level arrangements.

In the majority of countries, a single minimum wage is announced by the government, which ensures that it is paid to every worker. It is standard practice and an accepted norm that the employer determines the wages of skilled employees. A skilled worker will not accept minimum wage unless in dire circumstances.

Then there is the mantra of what labour leaders refer to as contract workers. This system is more aptly known as outsourcing of manpower or business functions or third-party employment. It is an employment arrangement in which workers perform services for a principal employer but are formally employed by another entity, such as a contractor, service provider, or outsourcing company.

Third-party employment is widely used in both the private and public sectors, particularly for labour-intensive functions or those requiring staffing flexibility. They prefer third-party employment for specific reasons, such as operational flexibility, cost efficiency, specialised expertise, business focus, risk management, and project-based employment. Although there is no bar to outsourcing, this system cannot and should not be used as a means to circumvent existing labour laws.

Labour leaders agitate over this issue because such workers cannot join the enterprise union, as they are technically employees of the service provider.

On the other extreme, some labour leaders possess a negative attitude and are instrumental in promoting and enriching themselves by disseminating complaints against local enterprises, especially garment and knitwear units, to their foreign associates.

These foreign entities, usually radical activists, pump up these complaints by sending them to brands that import from Pakistan and strongly demanding that they cease business with that unit. Although it is much ado about nothing, it impacts the nation’s image as well as exports.

The world has changed dramatically over the last few decades, and this transformation is a result of increasing globalisation of business, the growth of multinational corporations, the climate crisis, privatisation, and the rapid pace of technological change. Workers must join hands with employers and agitate for the rationalisation of heavy taxation measures, vociferously condemn and denounce the increase in blatant extortion demands on businesses by extremists and criminals, and influence the government to introduce favourable policies to spur industrialisation.

Bob Dylan’s message must be absorbed by labour leaders who are still trapped in a time warp. The lyrics are captivating: “Admit that the waters / Around you have grown / And accept it that soon / If your time to you is worth savin’ / And you better start swimmin’ / Or you’ll sink like a stone / For the times they are a-changin’.

The writer is the president of the Employers Federation of Pakistan

Published in Dawn, The Business and Finance Weekly, August 3rd, 2026

if you want to get more information about this news then click on below link

More Detail