May 1st: Labor Day and Pakistan

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One more Labor Day is being observed today across the world to give credit and to pay tribute to laborers. Through casting a glance at history, it becomes clear that in the 19th century, particularly during its last decade, various social movements emerged like a storm against the oppressors for getting due rights. However, there is not much change I look in the present scenario. I know many people who work as a manual laborer just for a small amount and they aren’t any weekly off days. If anyone gets sick or is unable to come to work for some reasons, he cannot imagine getting paid this day. Indeed, he would end up spending money on a visit to doctor just so he can get back to his life of servitude. One can only describe those working hours as restless, endless and stressful. Sometimes, it would be so hard when one is forced to compare himself to an animal and struggle to find a single difference. Ironically, this is not a story from the ancient times; rather, it is an account of my personal experiences. If we look at the larger perspective, this picture is the same, on the streets, in the marketplaces, and in the fields of this country. The structure does its best to squash poor laborers and workers. For last 64 years, millions of people in Pakistan including women and children have been victimized by a few influential hands, particularly the landlords, for their daily bread. A vast majority of laborers and daily-wage workers remain outside the domain of labour laws, which means that workers have no paid holidays, no job security, no medical coverage, no pension or provident fund, no limit on the work hours and are paid no overtime. One might as well just refer to them as bonded labour. According to the constitution of Pakistan, bonded labour is a severe crime, but no one cares about implementing laws that could protect workers and laborers. Every year on May 1, people across the globe, including Pakistan celebrate Labor Day as a public holiday. A few arrange get-togethers to enjoy the much needed holiday while others spend it either watching TV, playing games or sleeping in their beds all day. The idea is to gain as much from this day as one can – for oneself. But, what no one does is think about what this day truly stands for. I ask now: have any of us done anything to understand the problems of laborers on Labor Day?