Lahore: Shamsur Rahman Swati, the President of the National Labour Federation Pakistan (NLF), has said that inflation has forced workers and low-ranking government employees into starvation and suicides.
He stated that it is impossible to survive on the current wages. He demanded that the Punjab government immediately announce a 35% increase in wages, along with increments in basic salaries and pensions. He vowed to continue the struggle alongside the employees until their demands are met.
In Pakistan, six crore (60 Million) daily laborers and 15 million factory workers are deprived of their basic rights. We expect support from government employees in obtaining their rights. These employees are deprived of even the minimum wage, social security, and basic facilities, and daily laborers are denied all rights. There will be protests everywhere for their rights.
These views were expressed by Shamsur Rahman Swati while addressing the protesting government employees in front of the Civil Secretariat yesterday. The President of the Metro Corporation Union CBA Khidmat Group, Gul Zaman Swati, Chaudhry Haseeb ur Rahman Advocate, Muhammad Ahmed, and others also spoke during the protest. Thousands of workers from unions affiliated with NLF (National Labor Federation) participated in the government employees’ sit-in.
Shamsur Rahman Swati said that we stand in solidarity with the demands of Punjab’s government employees, who number around 1.7 crore (17 Million). He urged others to stand for the rights of these oppressed workers.
Shamsur Rahman Swati stated that the Pakistani elite squanders half of the budget on their extravagant luxuries. This behavior is intolerable for a struggling country. Therefore, for the past 75 years, the united front of feudal lords, capitalists, and the royal bureaucracy has been exploiting the nation. He said we should reject this troika and struggle together under the unity of Nizam-e-Mustafa.
