LAHORE - Health workers called off protest on Friday after the government accepted demand of scale upgrade and service structure, returning normalcy at The Mall and adjoining arteries.
Hundreds of Lady Health Supervisors (LHSs) and Lady Health Workers (LHWs) were staging a sit in outside Punjab Assembly for the last five days. Closure of Faisal Chowk and Sarey Fatima Jinnah from Sir Ganga Ram Hospital to The Mall continued causing massive traffic jam in the heart of the city for the last five days.
After getting notification regarding allocation of funds for payment of arrears, scale upgrade and service structure, leadership of health workers announced calling off strike.
The Punjab government had issued warning and gone to the extent of deputing lady riots Police for dispersing the porters in the light of court orders. The matter, however, was resolved amicably in the afternoon after the protesters were shown documents regarding acceptance of all demands.
Prior to the negotiation, hundreds of LHSs and LHWs continued sit in at Faisal Chowk while carrying placards and banners inscribed with the demands. Protesting workers chanted slogans in favor of their demands and against the provincial government. Unpleasant incidents of exchange of words between protesting workers and citizens were also witnessed.
Earlier, Secretary Primary & Secondary Health Punjab (P&SH) Ali Jan Khan said that Chief Minister Punjab has approved the service structure of LHSs and LHWs.
Addressing a press conference at Chief Minister’s Camp Office, he said that Punjab was the first province that approved SNE for 50,000 LHWs. Director General Health Services Dr Munir Ahmed, Project Director IRMNCH Dr Mukhtar Hussain Syed, Project Director HISDU Rashid Arshad and Deputy Secretary Dr Yadullah were also present.
Ali Jan Khan said that department has right to take disciplinary action against miscreants.
According to notification, 50% of the LHSs have been promoted to BPS-10 from 7, 35% BPS-12 and 15% toBPS-14. Similarly, 55% of the LHWs will remain in BPS-5 while 40% promoted to BPS-7 and 5% to BPS-9.
Ali Jan Khan said that unprecedented steps have been taken for the welfare of LHWs during the last eight months. He said that nearly 50,000 LHWs & LHSs were regularized in 2017 & their salaries were released from respective District Accounts Offices. Moreover, service rules were approved in October 2017 & these were published in the gazette notification in November 2017. He said that salaries of LHSs & LHWs have been paid up to March 2018. Notification of Rs5,000 monthly allowance for LHSs has also been issued. He said that Rs1.2 billion have been released as first installment for clearance of arrears. These funds will be transferred to their accounts during the coming month, he said. He further said that summary for the service structure of LHSs & LHWs was initiated in January 2018. He said that service structure and release of fund was carried out in a routine process. He said that the Department was disappointed by behaviour of some of LHSs and LHWs during the negotiations last day.
HRCP raises concerns
Six years on, the Punjab government has failed to implement the notification it issued in 2012, regularizing the services of 50,000 lady health workers (LHWs) in the province.
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) urges the Punjab government to rectify this immediately.
LHWs are critical to Pakistan’s public health delivery system—many of them working in remote and often difficult conditions to provide basic healthcare, family planning and vaccination services in underserved areas.
Hundreds of LHWs have collected at Charing Cross in Lahore to demand better working conditions.
They also allege that health department officials have sent them ‘false’ letters assuring them their demands will be met—but with no further action following these promises.
While creating a competitive work environment is important, this should not be at the cost of a decent work environment, which, under the International Labour Organization’s definition, includes a ‘fair income’, ‘security in the workplace’ and ‘better prospects for personal development’.
LHWs are poorly paid, those in Punjab earning about Rs15,000, according to the women on strike, and there are few provisions for their security when working in remote areas.
Many LHWs are also sorely disillusioned with the role of the World Health Organization, which, they feel, has encouraged the government to focus exclusively on meeting service delivery targets without accounting for LHWs’ poor working conditions and lack of training.