The hands that build nation: A Labour Day tribute to Pakistan’s workers

PESHAWAR, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 30th Apr, 2026) Every year, International Labour Day is marked on first May in many countries including Pakistan to honour contributions of workers to economic development and society prosperity.

Like other countries, International Labour Day will also be observed with enthusiasm in Pakistan where speakers will highlight the role of workers in building economy whether in factories, farms, offices, or services.

The day is observed every year in memory of the Chiagao USA victims who laid down life in 1886 while demanding eight hours workday.

The labours from Karachi to Khyber and Gwadar to Muzafarabad will stage rallies and walks in Pakistan and Azad Kashmir to show unity and raise awareness about ongoing challenges.

The labourers will gather at roads and streets in KP to renew their pledge sending a strong message to employers to provide proper wages and healthy environment under this year’s theme of “ensuring laborers’ safety and health at work place.

“But, there are many like Irshad Ali, a construction laborer who was busy lifting bricks to a construction site at Warsak Road Peshawar being unaware of this historic day.

Under blistering heat in the outskirts of Peshawar, Irshad Ali pushes a wheelbarrow stacked with bricks at a dusty construction site to earn living for his family amidst a relentless rise in living costs in Khyber Pakthunkhwa.

For his backbreaking labour, Irshad earns Rs. 1000 a day which is barely enough to feed his six-member family in wake of rising inflation and soaring prices of daily commodities in the open market of Peshawar.

“We work from dawn till dusk and still live hand to mouth, in KP ” he says, wiping sweat dripping from his brow.

“We have no proper healthcare, housing and educational facilities for our children in KP where price hike have made labour class unnerved .”

Following the daylong hard labour work, Irshad alongwith sons started wheat thrashing during night to meet the household demands of his family.

Irshad story reflects the harsh reality of the poor laborers in KP. Daily wagers, unskilled workers, construction and agricultural laborers and domestic helpers who contribute relentlessly to economic development of Pakistan await KP Govt action on construction of affordable houses for them.

After devolution of labor departments to provinces this area became more neglected with labour community mostly employed at brick kilns, transport, mining and agricultural lands face economic constraints amid poor wages.

Most of time these laborers and their families face economic problems year after year for borrowing money in advance to feed their children. This vicious circle of taking money in advance makes them vulnerable to perform extra hours duty.

“Nearly 72% of Pakistan’s workforce is employed in informal sector especially in construction, transport, livestock and agriculture and these workers often lack written contracts, social protections and even minimum wage guarantees in KP,” remarked Prof. Dr. Zilakat Malik, former Chairman of Economics Department, University of Peshawar.

“Most often their economic situation is unsatisfactory in KP where they are less paid besides facing adequate jobs opportunities to prosper. And if there are epidemics or calamities like COVID-19, life becomes even worse for them,” Dr. Zilakat said.

“Economic instability, weak industrialization, poor mining practices, lack of incentives for construction and social inequalities continue to push the poor deeper into hardship in KP.

And when the economy shrinks, it’s always the laborers who suffer the most,” he added.

Pakistan, a founding member of the International Labour Organization (ILO), has ratified 36 ILO conventions, including eight fundamental ones. The 1973 Constitution also guarantees workers the right to unionize, bargain collectively and secure fair wages.

But in many instances, the employers shy away from ensuring all facilities like sufficient wages, residences, educational, health and working hours facilities for their workers

“This is a sheer disconnect between policy and practice,” said Malik Ashfaq, a senior labour law expert and member of the Nowshera Bar Association while talking to APP.

“In KP, the Minimum Wages board revises salaries annually, but enforcement remains a major challenge especially in rural areas of KP.”

“Labour courts exist but are under-resourced, and many workers can’t even afford to take a day off to lodge a complaint,” he claimed.

Although he acknowledged some signs of progress like the KP government’s increase in minimum wage to Rs. 36,000 in the last budget and pilot programs using digital tools for social security registration, yet he said, “we have to see how far the government remains successful in implementing these measures in every nook and corner of the province.”

There are some other worth mentioning measures of the government like construction of affordable flats for laborers by Provincial Housing Authority (PHA) KP in different housing projects across the province.

In Labour City Regi Lalma, over 2,000 flats have been completed, while major housing projects are underway in Swat, Charsadda, Hangu, and Peshawar’s Surizai and Nishtarabad areas.

Over 9,000 units are being built in the Jalozai Housing Scheme, with 1,300 reserved specifically for laborers. Meanwhile, in Mardan, infrastructure upgrades are underway in the Labour Colony, and large tracts of land have been earmarked for worker-friendly housing.

Further support is also being provided for overseas Pakistanis through one-window facilitation desks and financial aid for their children’s international education.

Although these efforts are complemented by the concerned authorities focusing on worker welfare and development infrastructure, yet the question of reaching these benefits to actual deserving still remains unaddressed.

Some civil society organizations and NGOs are educating workers about their rights and helping them organize for better conditions. Youth and middle-class support for ethical labor practices is also growing.

But still, Dr. Zilakat warns that positive change demands more than scattered reforms. “We need digital worker databases, empowered inspection systems and above all, the political will to prioritize the rights of laborers.”

The current government touts its new labor policy as a turning point with promises of a 400% wage hike, job regularization and benefits for sacked employees. Yet critics argue that implementation remains sluggish, especially compared to unmet promises like the PTI’s pledge to construct five million homes for the poor.

“All we ask is fairness and acknowledgement,” Irshad Ali says, taking a brief rest before returning to his load. “Not charity, just a little dignity.”

He might be hinting towards energy shortfall, bureaucratic hurdles, shabby economy, social justice and merit, calling upon the KP government for a judicious mechanism and identifying real deserving to benefit from these development schemes.