Shortcomings, discrepancies identified in law, rules regulating woman farm workers

HYDERABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 4th Apr, 2026) The Sindh Cabinet has approved the rules for the Sindh Women Agriculture Workers’ Act, 2019, but the rules have omitted certain key areas like accountability mechanisms. The participants at a consultative dialogue, organised here at a hotel on Saturday by Hari Welfare Association (HWA), about the Act and its rules pointed out such lacunas. The participants, who included representatives of agrarian communities, trade unions, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan and the civil society, appreciated the Sindh government for enacting the law and its rules while pointing out the shortcomings. Akram Khaskheli, President of HWA, stated that the landmark act recognized the rights and contributions of women in agriculture, who had long remained invisible despite being essential to rural economies. He noted that there was a lack of a strong accountability mechanism within all labour laws, including the 2019 Act, as existing frameworks lacked effective enforcement provisions. The other speakers raised concerns about gender-based wage disparities, with women agricultural workers continuing to receive lower wages than men despite performing the same work. They highlighted that accessibility to worker registration remained a key issue under the Act, as there were no mechanisms to register women workers and support them at the union council level. 

Moreover, district-level mechanisms often remained inaccessible to women due to mobility and structural constraints, they said. 

It was further pointed out that although the Sindh Labour Department had developed digital systems for worker registration but the implementation remained weak and needed urgent activation.

Haris Ghazdar drew attention to discrepancies in reported figures, with participants asserting that the actual number of women agricultural workers was much higher. 

Ghazdar explained that there was a serious gap in implementation because the law and rules were developed under judicial pressure, their practical enforcement remained a major challenge. The consultation reaffirmed that the Act recognized even unpaid women such as those producing goods for household consumption as workers, in line with international standards such as those of the International Labour Organisation. 

Zahra Khan, General Secretary of the Home-Based Women Workers Federation, stressed the urgent need for social protection mechanisms, including extending the Employees Old-Age Benefits Institution (EOBI) coverage to agricultural workers. 

Qazi Khizar, Vice Chairperson of HRCP, commented that bonded labour in agriculture was widespread and that the issue had not been explicitly addressed within the act and the rules.

 Shanti, a peasant woman from Mirpurkhas, pointed out that economic injustices in agricultural markets were pervasive. 

She noted that farmers and peasants suffer due to low crop prices but their produce fetched a far higher price after passing through the hands of the middlemen to the benefit of the later.

Fozia, another peasant woman, emphasized on the need to clearly define worker categories such as skilled, semi-skilled, and unskilled to ensure fair wages. 

She recommended translating the Act and its rules into Sindhi and other local languages to improve understanding among farming communities.Advocate Sara Malkani highlighted inconsistencies between the Act and the drafted rules, especially regarding the definition of 'worker'. She said while the 2019 act aligned with ILO standards, the draft rules relied on outdated definitions from earlier legislation, creating contradictions. She pointed out ambiguities in provisions such as committee formation under Article 16-B, which lacked clarity on administrative levels.

Nasir Mansoor, Secretary of the National Trade Union Federation, stressed on the need for a tripartite approach involving workers, employers, and the government, which was absent in both the Act and the Rules. He raised concerns about exploitative practices such as third-party contracting, where industrial employers deny responsibility for workers’ rights.Kausar S Khan, a researcher, noted that key stakeholders like the Sindh Abadgar board and the Employees Federation of Pakistan, were absent during the drafting process. She recommended aligning worker registration processes with existing industrial laws and simplifying procedures to reflect ground realities, especially for women facing challenges similar to those in accessing services from institutions like the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA).The participants expressed concern that previous stakeholder feedback, particularly from women trade unions, had not been incorporated into the final approved version. It was agreed that formal recommendations and objections would be submitted to the Labour Department, and legal channels might be pursued if necessary to ensure rights-based standards were upheld. The consultation ended with a pledge to present those key issues in the upcoming dialogue scheduled for April 8 in Karachi, aiming to make the rules under the Sindh Women Agriculture Workers’ Act, 2019, more inclusive, practical, and aligned with international labour standards. 

Rafia Gulani, women’s rights activist, Samina of Azad Hariyani Trade Union, Nawabshah, and Allah Rakhi, President of Nari Hariyani Mazdoor Trade Union, Matiari, also shared their concerns during the dialogue.

APP/zmb/