ILO chief lauds Punjab’s worker welfare initiatives

LAHORE, Oct 08 (APP): Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif held a comprehensive meeting on Thursday with a delegation of the International Labour Organization (ILO) led by Director-General Gilbert F Houngbo, discussing wide-ranging measures for welfare, safety, and socioeconomic uplift of industrial workers in the province.

Welcoming the ILO delegation, Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif highlighted the historic steps taken by her administration, anchored by the recently enacted Punjab Labor Code 2026. She maintained that the new code ensures regular worker registration, strict legal compliance, and upward revisions in minimum wages, noting that minimum wage payments have been successfully enforced for 4.9 million workers over the past three years.

The chief minister apprised the visiting dignitary of major initiatives, including the distribution of 3.7 billion rupees to 1.2 million industrial workers via the Maryam Nawaz Ration Card scheme, alongside specialized housing and apartment allotments. She stressed that safety remains a core priority, pointing out that 42,858 workplace inspections and 22,547 advisories were processed to enforce Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) standards.

The meeting also reviewed targeted interventions against child labour. Highlighting the role of the Labor Information Management System (LIMS), the Chief Minister stated that authorities have identified over 70,000 cases of forced child labor, successfully rescuing and enrolling 3,644 children into schools while establishing dedicated rehabilitation centers and helplines like the 24/7 active Labor Helpline 1314.

Furthermore, plans are underway to set up Pakistan’s first Occupational Safety and Health Laboratory in Lahore this year, alongside regional OSH centers, day-care facilities to boost female workforce participation, and specialized employment facilitation hubs.

ILO Director-General Gilbert F. Houngbo paid rich tribute to Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif for her visionary governance, praising the substantial increases in worker welfare grants, the distribution of worker Ration cards, and the industrial apartment allotment initiatives.

The ILO chief also congratulated the Chief Minister on receiving the prestigious UN-Habitat Scroll of Honour Award.

Concluding the session, Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif expressed a firm resolve to seek specialized technical cooperation from the ILO to seamlessly integrate global labor standards into Punjab’s expanding economic corridors and supply chains.