presentation - construction workers

8/4/2019 Presentation - Construction Workers

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CONSTRUCTION WIORKERS IN NEPAL

Shankar Lamichhane


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INTRODUCTION

Construction - Major contributors to the process of development . Accounted

for 45% of the total development investment made since 1975.

Contribution to GDP was 9 percent (CBS 2001a). Provides employment for 11-

15% of the working age population in the non-agricultural sector (NLFS, 1998

& 2008).

Informal approach to construction practices is prevalent. Registered

contractors also engage workers through informal contracts.

Due to high flow of Nepalese Workers to foreign countries has caused

shortage of workers - Indian migrant labourers ( Skilled and Non Skilled) fill

the gap in the construction actives.

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Objectives :

To identify the types of employment relationship thatexists in the construction industry of Nepal

Explain about organizing strategies to organize theconstruction workers.

Methodology

Quantitative & Qualitative Analysis mostly based on

secondary information.

Limitation of the Study

Report based on available secondary information .


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Agriculture is the main occupation employing 73.9% of

labour force and contributes 34% of the GDPThe service sector provides work for around 19% of thelabor force.

Industry accounts for the remaining 7% approx.

About 54 percent of Nepal's population constitutes laborforce (aged between 15-64 years).

Labour force in wage employment in Nepal is 21%, self-employed labour force is 79 per cent.

Five percent of population is totally unemployed.


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Description

Year 1998/99 Years 2008

Number

Thousand

Percentage ofNumber

Thousand

Percentage of

Total

Employed Non Agri.

Total

Employed

Non

Agri.

Total Employed 9463 - 11779 - -

Employed in Agriculture 7203 76.1 - 8705 73.9 -

Employed in Non Agriculture 2260 23.9 - 3074 26.1 -

Mining & Quarrying 7 0.1 0.3 27 0.2 0.9

Manufacturing 553 5.8 24.5 773 6.6 25.1

Electricity, Gas and Water Supply 26 0.3 1.2 109 0.9 3.5

Construction 344 3.6 15.2 367 3.1 11.9

Wholesale, Retail & Trade 408 4.3 18.1 692 5.9 22.5

Hotels / Restaurant 114 1.2 5.0 197 1.7 6.4

Transport/Storage/Communication 135 1.4 6.0 198 1.7 6.4

Financial Intermediation 19 0.2 0.8 32 0.3 1.0

Real Estate / Renting and Business 32 0.3 1.4 71 0.6 2.3

Public Administration / Defense 70 0.7 3.1 109 0.9 3.5

Education 164 1.7 7.3 285 2.4 9.3

Health & Social Work 34 0.4 1.5 77 0.7 2.5

Community Social Activity 57 0.6 2.5 99 0.8 3.2

Private Household Work 289 3.1 12.8 33 0.3 1.1

Others 8 0.1 0.4 5 0.0 0.2

Sector wise labour participation

Source: Nepal Labour Force Survey Report 1998/99 and 2008


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Informal Sector in NepalAbout 3 million people aged 15 and over in the informal sectoraccounts for 70 percent of all employment in main jobs outside of theagricultural sector.

Formal sector is employing 0.93 million persons.Out of total working people in informal sector 1.37 million are male andfemale are 763000.

Sector

1998/99 2008

Total Male Female Total Male Female

Agriculture 7204 3176 4027 8705 3429 5275

Non Agriculture , Formal 603 509 94 932 711 221

Non Agriculture, Informal 1656 1052 605 2142 1379 763

Total 9463 4736 4727 11779 5519 6259

Employed Population (Age 15+) by Formal / Informal

Source: NLFS, 1998/99 and 2008, CBS


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History of Construction Development

Periods of

DevelopmentContemporary

RegimeCharacteristic Feature

From To

1769 1846Kingship Founder

king and his heirsEstablishment of 'Banaune Adda' (Construction Bureau)

1846 1951 Rana Regime

Up-grading of BA - To Central Public Works Bureau.

Separate units for construction within and outside valley. All

works executed departmentally.

1951 1957 Panchayat Regime

Ministry of Works and Transport established in 1951-52.

First five year plan put into implementation. Industrial Policy

Resolution 1957 - declared construction as the priority sector

industry.

1957 1974 Panchayat Regime

Industrial Enterprises Act (IEA 1974) defined contractors, and made

provisions for the registration and classification of contractors in class

'A', 'B' and 'C' categories

1974 1990Panchayat

Regime

IEA 1974 was modified to provide specific legal definition of the

construction firm.

1990 To dateMultiparty

Democracy

Construction Enterprises Act 1998 and Construction

Enterprises Regulation 1999 promulgated.Source: CAN Various


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Legal Framework - Construction Workers Issues

Labour Act 1992(Amended 1998) Labour Act 1993 (Amended 1998)

No separate set of acts and regulations governing construction sector workers.(The Labour Act and Regulations only

legal instrument).

Labour Act , Clause 46 -The management (owner) is responsible for:

Providing all the equipment to be used at construction site.

Accommodation, food supplies and potable water with more than fifty labour at work.

Ensuring appropriate accidental insurance, safety of the workers on site. PPEs to be made available.

Clause 84

Paid to be in accordance with the written contacts or else within 7 days.

In case of default in payments the worker can lodge a complaint in DLO or CDO.

DLO or the CDO will summon the culprit within fifteen days and can force him to deposit the due payments.Labor legislation prohibits employment of child labour and night-shift duties for women, compulsory record keeping

and a set of wage and welfare arrangements. The welfare arrangements include compensation for accidents and

'incapacity to work', social benefits available through the Provident Fund, medical facilities, insurance and public

holidays.

The regulation provisions "Minimum Wage Fixing Committee", consisting of equal representations of workers

Although legal provisions cover major aspects but lags to address the grievances due to weak implementation.

Trade union Act 1993

First amendment 1998 in trade union act widened the labour union coverage to informal sector. Thus Trade union

right of the construction workers is legally protected by the Act.


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Scope of Construction Activities in Nepal

Public Sector

Annual Government spending on infrastructure development is themajor source of construction sector employment.

Private Sector

Construction works owned and funded by private sector constitute a

significant proportion of construction activities, particularly in theurban areas.

Construction of Hotels, commercial and office complexes, real estatedevelopment (residential complex) as well as private houses are thedominant source of employment in construction sector (Jha, 2002).

Building Material Production

The processing and manufacturing units for building materials such asbricks, stone aggregates and tiles also generate considerableemployment.


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Stakeholders in the Construction SectorGovernment Agencies Employer and Regulator

Ministry of Physical Planning and Works , Ministry of Water Resources and Ministry of LocalDevelopment

The Ministry of Labour and Its Departments / Branches

Nepalese Contractors - Federation of Contractor's Association of Nepal (FCAN -1997).

Construction firms- Class A contractors - 175, Class B - 350 , Class C1425 and Class D -2000 (CAN 2000).

Nepalese Consulting Firms and SCAEF - 1990

Expatriate Contractors Linked with Projects financed by bilateral and multilateral funding.

Sublet more than 60% of the contract value to local contractors. Local contractors sublet

labour components to - Smaller contractors, including unregistered enterprises headed byNaikeas.

Council of Technical Education and Vocational Training (CTEVT) - Government agency

Skill development. - General Mechanic, Electrical, Sanitary Fitter, Construction Supervisor,Welder, Basic Construction Trades (Mason, Bar-bender, Scaffolder etc.), Fitter, Woodworker/Carpenter, Metal Worker and Surveyor.

Construction Industries Training Center (CITC) - Private sector initiative

Trade Unions - Main stake holder of the construction sector.

Trade Union National centers and their construction sector federation are dedicated toorganize and protect the right of the construction workers. Decent work is the major issue ofworkers of Nepal.


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EMPLOYMENT SYSTEM IN CONSTRUCTION SECTOR

Informal Construction Enterprises

The Naikeas

Private House Building

Private Non-Residential Building

Registered Construction Enterprises

( Public Infrastructure Development and Housing Companies)


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Construction Workers

Easy entry - The bulk of construction workers fromAgricultural Sector enter in the Construction Work

Supply of labour is largely seasonal.{Unskilled Workers having agricultural land in their villages,prefer not to work from June to August -paddy plantation season

and November/December - paddy harvesting season}.

75% Construction Workers are unskilled workers.

Workers start as unskilled labour and acquire their skillson the job (process oflearning by doing)

Skill is more important than the years of formal education

in construction sector.


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Category Male FemaleUnskilled 23.5 58.8Semi skilled 23.5 35.3Skilled 41.2 2.9Highly Skilled 11.8 2.9

Category of the Construction Workers by Skill

Source: GEFONT, Search for Alternatives, 2003


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Labour Associated With Naikeas - Informal construction groups or Naikea,may be either skilled or unskilled .

Socially cohesive entity, in which the members work and live together. Naikeasis not just a head of the business but is more like the head of a family.Construction Workers at Pickup Points (Naka Workers) - Information isexchanged and contacts renewed. Meeting ground for the stakeholders.Informal information centre for labour market. Place for social interactions -find relatives, friends and associates and renew contacts.

All categories of construction workers - skilled mason or stone dresser,

(Dakarmi), carpenter (Sikarmi), bar-bender (Nakarmi), plumber, electrician orunskilled workers (Jyami),

Specialized Groups at Local Level

Specialized groups - roof casting, bar-bending and scaffolding, electrical wiringand fitting, plumbing, marble and tile fitting, plaster of Paris works etc.

Roof casting (Dhalan-party) Unique in nature / majority members unskilled.Generally, consists of 30 to 40 members, 25% to 40% women.

Specialized Groups at National Level



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Construction Material Workers - Workers involved in the production of constructionmaterials

Stone Aggregate Workers -

The established and highly mechanized factory Workers and Manual Stone CrushersBrick Kiln Industry Workers -

There are more than 500 brick factories in Nepal employing more than 400,000workers.

Female Construction Workers

Significant Contribution of female workers. The NLFS (2008) survey found 52,000female construction workers as against 292,000 males.

Female constituted 25 to 40% of the roof casting groups and 75% of the stonecrushers.

MarblePolishing - specialized job where women workers at majority

Migrant Workers in Construction Sector (Indian Labourers)

Around 50 to 55 % of construction workers at pickup points in Kathmandu are Indianmigrant labourers while proportion of Indians in the Terai towns is lower. Half (50%) ofthe Indian migrant workers are from Bihar. Uttar Pradesh , Bengal , Rajasthan andothers states constitute 20 %, 15 %,10 % and 5 % respectively. Similarly, 35% of theIndian labourers are skilled and 65% unskilled (Jha, 2002).

T d C diti f E l t i C t ti S t


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Terms and Conditions of Employment in Construction SectorWorking duration per day - 8 hours.

Overwhelming majority - daily wage earners. Wage - normally above than casual workers (ILO, 2005).

Unskilled Construction worker - NRs 8000-10000 / month or NRs 350 450/day (Minimum wage -

NRs 4600/month or NRs 190/ day in Kathmandu) Similarly, Skill labour NRs 500 600/day or NRs

12000- 15000 / month (minimum wage of NRs 4760/month for skill labour).

Payment mechanism - informal and purely guided by inter personnel relationship.

The mode of payment for labour depends upon mutual convenience.

Workers may be paid individually and directly by the contractor as per daily wage rate .

Public sector construction activities, registered contractors depend on gang leaders to supply labour.

Workers paid on daily wage rates, no any social benefits.

Discrimination in wage by gender despite the legal provision of equal remuneration for equal work.

Lack of awareness about Workmen's Compensation Insurance Policy and kind of social benefits.

Thinking about retirement or non working period benefits is beyond imagination.

Brick making and stone crushing are least rewarding. Usually filled by women, children and the

elderly.

Health and safety on the average site is very poor.Use of safety equipment (Personal Protective Equipment) is the rare trend. Mostly workers are not

provided such PPEs..

The concept of accidental insurance is relatively new. Victims were helped by the Naikeas or the

owners, sub-contractors and contractors on purely humanitarian grounds. Social protection is the far

reaching issue till date.


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Organizing Construction Workers

Organizing - Its Importance

Unity is only strength of the weaker. Sangham Saranam Gachhami,Shanghe Shakti Kaliyuge

Government support, employers rational or law for workers only cannot be the reliable means for

the justice to the working people.

Members are the union and organizing is about winning in the workplace, winning in the society.

Where-

Wining by and large mean, win group strength over individual weakness, win hope over fear and

win dignity over oppression.

Organizing and Trade Union

Trade unionism - Fundamentally based on the principle of collectivism.

Organizing - Key priority for Trade Union.

Organizing - Communicate with members and other , Awareness creation, Recruit new members.

Construction sector operations generally of mobile nature. High mobility - Major challenge to

organize workers.


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Present Organizing Situation

Process of unionization - after restoration of democracy in 1990. Firstamendment of Labour Act in 1998 and Trade Union Act in 1999 provisioned fororganizing informal workers accelerated union activities in the informal sector

including construction sector.

Construction and Allied Workers Union of Nepal (CAWUN) affiliate union ofNTUCI 60330 Members

Central Union of Painters, Plumbers, Electro and Construction Workers Nepal(CUPPEC-Nepal) affiliated with GEFONT56228 Members .

All Nepal Construction Workers Union (ANCWU) affiliate union of ANFTU -13500members.

Total unionized number (Including the members of all other unions) - 135000.

Nepal Labour Force Survey Report 2008 344000 workers in construction work.

(So the percentage of unionized workers in this sector is approx 40%).

CAWUN and CUPPEC are affiliated with Building and Woodworkers International(BWI) a global union federation of construction sector workers in the globe .


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Organizing TechniquesNo readymade solutions and single model regarding organizing the workers.

Organizing strategy depends on -

legal framework of the country such that what right exist.

Type of industry and state of the industry, nature of employment, types of workers(self employed/wage employed/home based/ contract/etc), availability of the unionresources (financial, material & people) determine the organizing strategies.

Image and status that the trade union has is another matter that influence theorganizing process.

In conventional approach, union/union officials provide collective & individual servicesto members.

Wide spared informal workplace - Insufficient and quit impossible to provide services byhandful of union officials to the union members. So the concept of organizing model intrade unionism..

Actions at macro policy level - effective tool to create environment for organizing.Campaigns at national level on issues such as

Labour law reforms to ensure the Right to Organise, to Union Recognition, for CollectiveBargaining Rights (ILO Conventions 87 & 98)

TripartismRight to be represented in the decision making bodies at Govt level

Campaign for domestic social clause (Companies using public funds/ subsidies/nationalresources to respect workers rights)

Partnerships with other social organizations/ linking workers movement with others

O i i T h i


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Organizing Techniques

Organizing Culture - Organizing at top priority - allocateresources, involve unions in systematic campaigns,increase members .

Organizing culture not just implies an approach toorganizing but also a vision of union purpose & form. Itseeks workers as the active participants rather thanpassive consumers. Instead of just solving problems,

union fosters activism, cooperates to empower workersto solve their problems through union.

Team Building a Tool for Effective Organizing

Leadership Development

AHA (Anger, Hope, Action) Technique for Organizing :Tool for organizing the working people.

O i i T h i


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Campaign as a Tool for OrganizingCampaign - Identifying the issues , getting people to help and run the campaign program.

Campaign - Increases the visibility of union, Improves the representation of under-

represented groups and ultimately Attracts the non member to join the unionMajor Campaign Issues for organizing

Collective Bargaining at sectoral level, regional level

Coalition building

Workplace educational campaigns

Lobbying

Media campaign

Health and safety

Organizing Actions at WorkplaceField action program like; workshops and educational forums, social events,demonstrations and rallies, informational picketing and distributing literature in the field /

workplace are the tools that pay effective result in promoting organizing.

Multi-union Organizing

Regular Visit by Organizer / Leader


Organi ing Techniques


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Organizing through Self Help Groups

CooperativesWorking together - main philosophy of cooperative. Cooperative is an autonomous

association united voluntarily to meet - common economic, social, and cultural needsand aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically controlled enterprise.

Utilize the potential of cooperatives -

Saving and credit cooperative, Consumer cooperative, Group insurance are the collectiveaction binding the workers in the group - ultimately helps for greater cohesion amongthe working people.

Membership Servicing

For the effective organizing Trade Union need to go beyond collectivebargaining, like-

Providing social welfare services linking with govt programmes forproviding access to workers for social welfare programmes.

Using group insurance schemes to provide social protection - health care,

life insurance Organizing through saving, credit and social welfare services

Organizing not at workplace but at workers living areas

Housing,

Cultural, sports and leisure activities,

Skill training



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CONCLUSION

Construction sector plays vital role - providing employment; absorbs underemployed agri.

labours

Informal employment relation is the wide spread phenomenon . Major priority of workers -finding the work on regular basis and maintenance of the income.

Skill supports in raising the income. Process of learning by doing - to upgrade the skill .

Contribution of women is significant but are deprived. Along with the exploitation in terms of

wage, are employed only as helpers and lag for opportunity in acquiring skills..

Low wages, long working hours, seasonal and temporary nature, no paid leaves (weekly rest,

sick leave, public holidays), no provision of social security (provident Fund, gratuity, Medicare

facilities), unhealthy workplace and unsafe working environment, gender discrimination,

problem of timely payment, unhealthy competition among the workers, and Contractual work

are the common feature of construction sector. Such features causing exploitation anddeprivation are the major challenge.

Establishment of collective bargaining mechanism and system can support for wellbeing. Unity

of the workers is the ultimate mean.

Organizing and organizing only should be the major target of trade union.

References & Bibliography


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References & Bibliography

CAN (2000), Nepalese Construction Souvenir, Published by the Federation of Contractors' Associations of Nepal

(CAN) to Commemorate the 7th General Assembly, Kathmandu.

Carr, M & Chen, M.A. (2002), Globalization and the Informal Economy: How Global Trade and Investment Impact

on the Working Poor, ILO, Geneva

CBS (2000), Statistical Pocket Book Nepal, Kathmandu, Central Bureau of Statistics, National Planning

Commission, His Majestys Government, Nepal.

CBS (2001a), Statistical Pocket Book Nepal, Central Bureau of Statistics, National Planning Commission, His

Majestys Government, Nepal.

CBS (2001), Census 2001, Kathmandu, Central Bureau of Statistics, National Planning Commission, His Majestys

Government, Nepal.

CBS (1998/99), Nepal Labour Force Survey, Central Bureau of Statistics, His Majestys Government, Nepal,

Kathmandu.CBS (2008), Nepal Labour Force Survey, Central Bureau of Statistics, Government of Nepal, Kathmandu.

CUPPEC-Nepal (Various-1998 to 2002), Nirmankarmi, periodical published by the Central Union of Painters,

Plumbers, Electro and Construction Workers-Nepal (CUPPEC-Nepal), an affiliate of GEFONT, Kathmandu.

GEFONT (2007), Nepal: Labour under the Chimney, General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions, Kathmandu

Jha, K.K. (2002), Informal Labour in the construction Industry in Nepal, Sectoral Activities Programme, Working

Paper 187, ILO ,Geneva

ILO (2005), Decent Civil Works in Nepal: From Research to Action Planning, ILO Country Office Nepal,Kathmandu

NPC (1998), Eleventh Plan (2007-2012), National Planning Commission Secretariat, Government of Nepal,

Kathmandu.

UNDP (2001), Nepal Human Development Report 2001 - Poverty Reduction and Governance , United Nations

Development Program, Kathmandu.

Vaid, K.N. (1999), The Construction Industry in Nepal - the Challenges of Manpower Development. National

Institute of Construction Management and Research (NICMAR), Walchand Center, Mumbai.


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Thanks for Listening

presentation - construction workers

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