Pakistani Union Fights for Rights of Sacked Casual Workers at Karachi Pearl Continental Hotel

Posted to the IUF website 21-Dec-2001

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Union members demonstrating in support of sacked casual hotel employees.

Pakistani Union Fights for Rights of Sacked Casual Workers at Karachi Pearl Continental Hotel

The IUF-affiliated Pearl Continental Hotels Employees Trade Unions Federation is fighting for the rights of casual employees who have been brutally sacked at the Pearl Continental Hotel in Karachi.

The hotel management, citing a downturn in occupancy after September 11, proposed to the union that all casual and temporary workers be retrenched and that every permanent employee should take two days weekly rest, one of which would be unpaid. Many of these "temporary" workers, who earn only a basic daily wage with no benefits, have been working more than 5 years on the job.

The union rejected this proposal and called for negotiations. Management then proceeded to sack 350 casual workers. The union was not informed, nor were the dismissed workers. The dismissal letter was published in a daily newspaper on November 8, and the workers were barred from entering the hotel when they reported for work the next day.

The union fought back with an energetic mobilization, and the IUF Pakistan Outreach Office has been actively building support for the union by contacting trade union federations, human rights organizations, federal and provincial labour ministries and the press. In the course of the campaign, the union vice-chairman has been harassed by the police and violently attacked near his home.

The union is fighting hard on behalf of casually-employed non-members at the hotel in a difficult, often violent context, and deserves the widest-possible international support. We therefore urge all supporters of democratic and trade union rights to support the Pearl Continental workers and their union by sending a fax message to the parent company with a copy to the hotel management. The following letter may serve as an example. Kindly forward to the IUF secretariat copies of any messages you might send. We thank you in advance for your solidarity and support.

Model Fax to: Mr. Murtaza Hashwani, Chief Executive, Pakistan Services Limited, Islamabad
Fax Number: 92 51 282 19 86

Dear Sir,

I am shocked and outraged to learn of the brutal summary dismissal of 350 daily-waged and temporary workers at the Pearl Continental Hotel in Karachi. We have been informed that management had proposed to the union representing workers at the hotel that all temporary workers be retrenched, and that permanent staff be obliged to take two days rest per week, one of which would be unpaid. When the union rejected this proposal and sought negotiations, 350 temporary workers were retrenched without notice. Neither the workers nor the union were informed. Instead, a dismissal letter was published in a daily newspaper on November 8, and employees reporting for work on November 9 were prevented from assuming their duties.

Furthermore, the detention of the union vice-chairman by the police on November 4, and the subsequent attack on the same union officer outside his home on November 7, must be interpreted as acts of anti-union intimidation.

These acts constitute flagrant violations of trade union rights as set out in Conventions of the ILO, which have the force of international law and are therefore binding on the government of Pakistan.

We therefore urge you to act immediately to facilitate good faith negotiations with the union at the Pearl Continental Hotel in Karachi to resolve the outstanding problems at the enterprise. Failure to do so will inevitably have a negative impact on both the Karachi establishment and the company's brand name and international image.

Sincerely yours,

cc: General Manager, Pearl Continental Hotel, Karachi, Pakistan
Fax: + 92 21 568 1835/568 2655