LAHORE
Workers of STHAL Co. engineering factory staged a protest against the illegal dismissal of 16 of their colleagues, on the allegation of being involved in the formation of a union.
The protestors gathered at Assembly hall and blocked Mall road for half an hour. They chanted slogans against the administration of the factory and Provincial Minister of Labor Ashraf Sohna.
Leader of the protest Gulzar Ahmad Chaudary told Pakistan Today that the administration of the STHALCO fired 16 workers and 200 laborers without prior notification on Wednesday. He stated that factory laborers are not granted social security, bonus, increment and post retirement pension. He further added that when the workers tried to form a union to safeguard their rights, the administration fired them.
The protestors appealed to the Punjab government to take the strict action against the factory administration and demanded the reinstatement of the fired workers and laborers. The protesters threatened the initiation of a country wide strike if the government failed to hold the administration accountable for the illegal dismissals.
Labor minister Punjab, promised the formation of a committee which would look into the matter.
