women’s economic empowerment in the manufacturing...

Women’s Economic Empowerment

in the Manufacturing Workplace

Market Development Facility

August 2017

Mahreen Khan

Table of Contents

Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 3

I. Objectives.......................................................................................................................................... 4

Chapter 1: Stakeholders ................................................................................................................................ 5

I. Leather (Garments, Accessories, Sports Goods) ............................................................................... 6

II. Textiles (garments, linen and embroidery) ....................................................................................... 8

III. Pharmaceutical (medicines, herbals and IV’s) .............................................................................. 9

IV. Public Sector, Associations, NGOs & Ancillary Service Providers ............................................... 10

Chapter 2: Key Findings .............................................................................................................................. 13

I. Barriers to Women Working ........................................................................................................... 14

II. Employer Attitudes to WEE............................................................................................................. 15

III. Practical Solutions to Facilitate WEE........................................................................................... 16

Chapter 3: Recommendations .................................................................................................................... 17

I. Potential Partnerships ..................................................................................................................... 18

II. Public Policy Levers ......................................................................................................................... 19

III. Ancillary Service Providers .......................................................................................................... 19

Chapter 4: WEE Workshops ........................................................................................................................ 21

I. Core Themes for Engagement ........................................................................................................ 22

II. Communicating WEE Benefits ........................................................................................................ 22

III. WEE Workshop Panellists ........................................................................................................... 23

IV. Next Steps in WEE Campaign ...................................................................................................... 24

REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................................ 25

APPENDIX .................................................................................................................................................... 26

I. Interview Questionnaires ................................................................................................................ 27

Introduction The aim of the field work and report on Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE) in the manufacturing

workplace is to capture a snapshot of employer and worker concerns, experiences and challenges across

small, medium and large manufacturers in the leather, textile and pharmaceutical industries.

These industries were chosen as the majority of women workers are engaged in these sectors and

textiles account for the largest contributor to Pakistan’s exports. Pakistan’s women work on products

that are shipped to all corners of the globe. In Sialkot women hand stitch footballs for export to

European Clubs, in Muridke they work on shoe uppers destined for malls abroad, and in Karachi they

crop threads off denim jeans for a UK brand.

In textiles, the majority of women are engaged in Cut Trim and Manufacture (CTM) operations as well as

in factories operating sewing machines. Often women get the lowest paying jobs in cropping (cutting

stray threads) and checking (quality control) on the factory floor. Home-based workers are

predominantly women (although not the focus of this study). Third-party contractors are often engaged

to hire labour as peak seasonal orders require a fluid workforce to meet deadlines. Also by having

temporary contract workers, manufacturers avoid legal obligations to pay minimum wage and other

benefits.

The pharmaceutical industry employs women mainly in packing and quality control. Some are employed

in the laboratory and more than two thirds of pharmacy graduates are now women which is an

opportunity for further study.

Much worthy research has been done on the various barriers, inequalities and challenges faced by

women in the labour force. However, the aim of this project was to find effective ways of

communicating the benefits of employing and empowering women to all relevant stakeholders,

especially to employers and to establish women’s employment as good for business, significant for

improving living standards for entire families and critical for Pakistan’s future as a global competitor.

Market Development Facility 4

I. Objectives

This field research and design of the Stakeholder Dialogues, Video of Women at Work and interaction

with employers and women workers, NGOs and trade associations methodology aimed to achieve the

following:

a. Identification of key stakeholders in private, public and non-profit sectors in addition to third-party service providers across Lahore, Karachi, Faisalabad and Sialkot

b. Understanding of key constraints inhibiting growth in women’s employment both at the employer and employee level

c. Assessment of willingness of the private sector players to engage more women in the workforce

d. Identification of innovative solutions (if any) by respondents to attract more women in the workforce

e. Engagement with public sector participants to identify key policy levers which support inclusion of women in the workforce

f. Mapping out third parties (private sector and non-profit) which provide ancillary services, both on-site and off-site, which facilitate inclusion of women in the workforce

g. Identification of possible private sector actors, public-private arrangements and third parties interested in investing in this area, with or without signing partnerships with MDF

h. Identification of key themes for the conceptual plan for the engagement workshops


Chapter 1: Stakeholders

I. Leather Manufacturers

II. Textiles Industry

III. Pharmaceutical Industry

IV. Public Sector, NGOs, Associations and Ancillary Service Providers


I. Leather (Garments, Accessories, Sports Goods)

Business Name Type

Location Size Contact

Employs Women

Reasons for employment or non-employment

Transport Meals Day Care

MDF Partnership WEE Workshop

Acelin Sports

Cricket Balls

Small 100

Sialkot

CEO: Ch. Aslam

No ▪ Specialised hand stitching

▪ No separate area for women available

Not Applicable No

No

Trade National Corporation

Jackets

Small 80

Sialkot

CEO K. Jahangir

No ▪ Margins too low ▪ Women cannot

travel alone ▪ Specialised

stitching skills required

Not Applicable No

No

The Designer

Jackets

Small 120

Karachi

CEO Syed Shujaat Ali

Yes, only 2-3 ▪ Margins too low ▪ Women cannot

travel alone as it is an industrial zone so public transport very limited

▪ Specialised stitching skills required

Pick n drop for ladies – other workers also share a vehicle rented by an employee

No meals No day care

Yes, Very Interested

Yes

Naz Leather Industries

Safety Gloves

Medium

Sialkot

M. Ashraf Naz, CEO

No, terminated all female employees 4 months ago

▪ Experience was not good as the women were not skilled so higher per unit costs and unit was in loss

▪ Cultural issues with male worker interactions controversial

Not Applicable No

Unlikely

Anwar Khwaja Industries Footballs for export

Large 500+ Sialkot Mohamad Hussain, Production Manager

Yes, 60 -70 Main Unit + 2 village units visited (3 locations visited)

▪ Central city location so women live locally

▪ Women have advantage in hand stitching

▪ Village units predominantly female due to proximity to

Yes: buses pick n drop from numerous central pick up points

Lunch provided free

Some segregated and some mixed areas

Day care in village units only

No - already employing to capacity

Unlikely to

attend WEE Workshop


Business Name Type


Employs Women


Transport Meals Day Care


homes and male relatives on site

NOVA Leather

Garments Shoes & Bags

Large 1200+

Karachi

Rehan Iqbal, CEO

YES ▪ Peak seasonal nature of orders requires fluid labour supply and overtime to meet deadlines

▪ Specialised skills required for symmetry in leather stitching vs. textile and heavier material to stitch

▪ Women not preferred for tannery work due to heat, effluent and heavy machinery

No Transport as facility is located in centre of residential areas

No meals No day care Side Note: All employees are hired through contractors therefore on piece rates so no extra facilities as above are required to be provided

Yes

Yes

Leather Field Private Limited

Leather Garments

Sohail Ghuman Director Marketing

Large

2700+

Sialkot

No ▪ Seasonal nature of orders requires fluid labour supply and overtime to meet deadlines

▪ Specialised skills required for symmetry in leather stitching vs. textile and heavier material to stitch

▪ Women not preferred for tannery due to heat, effluent and heavy machinery

Not Applicable Side Note: Transport provided for male labour but considered not viable for female workers as facility is out of city and skilled women located nearer city would not wish to travel so far even if transport given.

Not likely to be of practical benefit as nature of work is main constraint and distance

No


II. Textiles (garments, linen and embroidery)

Business Name Type


Employs Women


Transport Meals Day Care Facilities


Schatz International

Corsets

Small 70+

Sialkot

CEO M Imran

No ▪ Low margins ▪ Seasonal orders

Potential as

separate buildings unoccupied for future female employees

Not Applicable Yes (high)

Possible

Classique Textiles

Bed & Table Linen

Small 50-60

Faisalabad

Mr M Razzaq CEO and family

Yes 10 - in packing & QC

▪ Stitching quality good – attention to detail and discipline

Capacity: has

separate areas and production capacity

Yes: (high) family run business

Yes – good

candidate to elaborate points at workshop

Cosy International (Pvt) Ltd

Linens & Knitted Garments

Medium 700+

Faisalabad

GM Marketing Azhar Iqbal Baig

Yes - but recently closed female unit

Only 4 women retained in QC dept Female Unit was closed down due to higher unit costs due to transport provision. Also females were not as highly skilled.

Separate female workspace + dispensary + child specialist was provided previously

Now unit is outsourced to contractor hiring male workers on piece rate.

Already in collaboration with GIZ for Lean Manufacturing Productivity & Standards

Workshop: No

Town Crier

Label Manufacturers for Garments

Medium 500+

Faisalabad

Mr Mueen Ud Din

Senior Production Manager

Yes – 6 in packing and 9 in quality control (QC)

Work well – not abusive or troublesome but never employed in non-packing areas because of cultural factors. Have an eye for detail.

Mixed hall with separate bathroom and rest area No transport or food for any employee

Yes – can employ 50-60 women by converting packing unit to all female

Workshop

Rajby Textiles

Large 15000+

Karachi

Yes Women have always been employed due to natural affinity for stitching and QC eye for detail

Day care room but NOT being utilised

Transport Healthcare

No – already at capacity

Yes – video participant


Business Name Type


Employs Women




Mr Masood Niaz, Director

Al Karam

Gul Ahmed

Very Large

Very Large

Yes Yes

Both declined meetings due to Khaadi protests & controversy

Use third-party contractors to hire workers on piece rates and temporary contracts which obviate need for above benefits

Both declined to attend due to Khaadi protests & controversy

III. Pharmaceutical (medicines, herbals and IV’s)

Business Name Type


Employs Women




Medics Laboratories

M. Qayyum CEO

Small

Karachi

YES: 90/200 QC – Product Development & Packaging

▪ Company Mission

▪ Women work diligently

▪ More disciplined and less likely to switch companies

▪ More honest – don’t pilfer items

Yes, pick n drop for ladies

Yes, meals provided

Day care: unaware of legal requirement but plan to now set up if in demand

YES Selected for

Video & KHI workshop

Medipak Limited

Naveed Chowdhry & Naureen Khalid

Executive Directors

Medium 1000+

Lahore

YES: 180-2000 in assembly, packing & QC

▪ Company Mission

▪ Women work diligently

▪ More disciplined and less likely to switch companies

No transport except for over time – labour lives mostly on walking distance

No meals but separate canteen area/timings

No day care but plans to fund facility via CSR

YES Invite to LHE

workshop

Hilton Pharma Large 2000+

Karachi

YES Due to KHAADI controversy Hilton declined to be visited

Invited but declined to attend due to Khaadi controversy


IV. Public Sector, Associations, NGOs & Ancillary Service Providers

NAME CONTACT KEY POINTS

Ministry of Textile Industry Federal Secretary – Islamabad

Kanwar Usman – Director R&D

Advisory Cell

No specific WEE relevant policies

Ministry of Industries &

Production

Federal Secretary – Gondal

Islamabad & Abdul Ghaffar

Khattak, CEO National

Productivity Organisation

No specific WEE relevant policies

National Commission On The

Status Of Women (NCSW)

Ms. Khawar Mumtaz

Chairperson NCSW Islamabad

Report on Status of Women very in-

depth study and information

Invite for WEE LHE workshop

International Labour

Organisation (ILO)

Syed Saghir Bukhari

Senior Programme Officer

ILO Country Office Islamabad

Very relevant WEE relevant policies and

textile industry specific studies


United Nations Industrial

Development Organization

(UNIDO) Islamabad

Esam Alqararah, Country

Representative, UNIDO

Badar ul Islam, Program Officer,

SME & Export Development

Nadia Aftab, National Program

Officer

Setting up Sialkot Tannery Zones


Planning Commission of

Pakistan

Islamabad meeting + phone

conversations

Vision 2025 – No gender oriented policies –

only mention of gender in relation to SDG’s

Workshop

Small & Medium Enterprise

Development Authority

(SMEDA)

Ms. Nadia Jahangir General

Manager SMEDA Lahore

Fund and oversee Incubation Centres for

female entrepreneurs mostly home-based

Punjab Govt will be funding day care facilities

for all government offices

Action: provided them with contact

details for Mera Maan



Invite for WEE workshop LHE & Panel

Sialkot Chamber Of

Commerce & Industry (SCCI)

Ms. Atqa Arshad Puri R&D Officer Women’s Chamber and Expo held this year

LHE Workshop – leather hub so relevant

Bedaari (NGO) Sideline meeting at ILO

Conference

For profit training programmes for women

Already connected to MDF via Amna

Invite to WEE workshop LHE

Mera Maan (NGO) Shahnaz Kapadia, CEO, Islamabad

(Meeting in Lahore)

Facilitating Sustainable Transformation and

Business Enabling Services – early childhood

development centres – support set up of

ancillary service providers


Technical Education &

Vocational Training

Authority (TEVTA)

Waheed Asghar Ch. Director

Apprenticeship Training, Punjab,

TEVTA Sectt - Lahore Ms. Amber

Afzal Chattha Manager

(Placement)

Conduct various technical courses at

institutes with female participants – stitching,

designing and machine stitching


Pakistan Leather Garments

Manufacturers Association

(PLGMEA) Chairman South

National Institute of Leather

Technology (NILT)

Chairman: Syed Shujaat Ali

Karachi

As above - Karachi

Invite to WEE Workshop KHI

Can also speak about NILT

Panel KHI

CAREEM transport provider Junaid Iqbal CEO Teleconference: CAREEM willing to provide

discount to women workers in cities in which

they operate

Invite to KHI workshop

Pakistan Institute of Fashion

Design (PIFD) Lahore

Imran Mahmood

Head of Dept.

Dept of Fashion Design

Dept of Leather Accessories &

Footwear

Interesting insights into female student drop-

out rates and cultural barriers to women

going into textile/leather manufacturing

Invite to LHE workshop



National Textile University

Dr Abher Rasheed, Head of Dept.

Garment Manufacturing

Faisalabad

Due to logistical difficulties interview had to

be postponed - if time permits it will be

conducted on the phone

Ministry of Human Resource

Development

Islamabad Multiple requests via email and phone –

meeting not granted and no further response

Pakistan Footwear

Manufacturing Association

PFMA

Lahore Multiple attempts to meet with Chairman

Javed Siddiqui but due to his changing travel

dates meeting was not possible

Invite to Lahore Workshop


Chapter 2: Key Findings

I. Barriers to Women Working

II. Employer Attitudes to WEE

III. Practical Solutions to Facilitate WEE


I. Barriers to Women Working

Most employers acknowledged that women are better workers. However, many women face

considerable hurdles in taking up formal employment. They do not have enough avenues and training

institutes to pick up new skills. They require safe working conditions and safe transport before they can

get to the factory floor. Family attitudes and societal perceptions also play into the decision for women

to take up work. These barriers are summarized in Figure 1.

These barriers have been researched and documented in many reports and surveys, and were

reinforced by the interviews in this study with employers and women workers citing the above as key

barriers.

Pressure to work near home

Safe cheap reliable transport

Learning new skills & decent

working conditions

Family permission & co-operation

Figure 1: Barriers women have to overcome in order to work

Societal bias against women

working outside the home

The business case for hiring women

workers (productivity, efficiency and

improved culture) is acknowledged by

most employers. So what prevents

them from hiring more women?


II. Employer Attitudes to WEE

A. Employers want to employ more women

All of the employers interviewed expressed willingness and even a preference to hire more women

workers because their experiences were that women are more disciplined, punctual and productive

compared to young men. They also pay more attention to detail and have natural advantages in

stitching, inspection and packing tasks requiring concentration and attention to detail. Specifically, a

number of employers stated that women were more honest, do not pilfer items or steal designs, poach

ideas for competitors or cause conflicts or disruption compared to male counterparts. They also take

fewer breaks (they don’t smoke), do not loiter or use mobile phones and do not cause disruption.

B. Employers are frustrated by the lack of skilled women workers

Most employers would like to employ more women but are often unable to locate enough skilled

women available locally to their factories. They have to rely on third-party contractors to hire workers

on piece rates or transport piece work to women working in village units or at home (example village

stitching units for football manufacturers in Sialkot).

Lack of appropriate training and skills was found to be a key barrier in employing more women workers

in textiles and the leather sector. (This was not so pertinent to pharmaceuticals, as women are mostly

engaged in packing. In fact, 80% of graduates in pharmacy are now young women.) Most employers

prefer to train workers within their facilities but since women tend to leave when they marry or have

children, this is seen as a lost investment. Investing in factory-based skills training for women and career

development awareness present a partnership opportunity for MDF.

C. Employers rate public sector institutes training as low quality output - they require retraining in

the factory setting

There are several government training institutions including National Institute of Leather Technology

(NILT), Technical Education and Vocational Training Authority (TEVTA) and others. Employer reviews of

these institutions were largely negative and those who had received placement candidates from these

institutes said they had to be retrained. In contrast, TEVTA claimed that employers were always

consulted regarding the design of training courses and industry placements were successful. The gap

between these two versions may be because TEVTA did not appear to have a monitoring mechanism

once a candidate goes into a placement. Therefore, mere placement at a manufacturing unit was ticked

off as a success.

This is an important area of further research to identify shortcomings in the design of skills training

courses. Independent results measurement and feedback mechanisms are required to improve training

institute performance. These are potential intervention points to improve courses, student attendance

and incorporate industry feedback.

D. Employers view transport for women as a special provision rather than an important equaliser


Women are limited to working locally as safe, cheap, reliable transport is not available. Proximity to home also reduces objections of family members and reduces the burden of transport costs for low income women in particular.

III. Practical Solutions to Facilitate WEE

During the course of the field research and stakeholder participation during the WEE workshops the

following emerged as innovative solutions employers use to overcome barriers to women working in

their facilities:

▪ Segregated work spaces minimise interaction between men and women and thus limit opportunities

for harassment. Women feel safer at work as a result and cite this as one of their comfort factors in

having decent working conditions:

- separate entrances and work areas (Servis, MedicsLabs)

- only women or mature gentlemen supervise women workers (all)

- staggered timings for men and women for arrival, departure and meal times (Servis, Footlib and MedicsLabs)

▪ Zero tolerance on harassment means a presumption in favour of the female complainant so that the

mere complaint triggers a dismissal for the harasser. MedicsLabs in Karachi stated their policy as:

“One complaint and you are out!”

▪ Providing transport for women, via subcontractors. This enables employers to bear the cost but

avoid the hassle of running a transport division and remove one of the key obstacles women face.

Families feel secure knowing safe and reliable transport is provided.

▪ Open days for family members to visit factory premises help overcome family objections and

misperceptions about working environments (MediPak Ltd Lahore).

▪ Employing a cluster of women in a particular department creates a sense of community and

sisterhood. Having more mature women to mentor and guide younger women provides a stabilising

influence.

▪ Providing additional benefits such as a marriage fund (MediPak Ltd), healthcare and maternity leave

(MedicLabs) enables women to maintain other roles whilst working.

▪ Ensuring that women can leave by 3 or 4pm to attend to domestic responsibilities and get home

before dark is an essential component in assisting women to feel secure in leaving home to work.

There may be one limitation of this analysis. By international WEE standards some of these measures

may be viewed as based on patriarchal values but the anecdotal evidence shows that women workers

value these as helpful measures for them to overcome issues in the workplace.


Chapter 3: Recommendations

I. Potential Partnerships

II. Public Policy Levers

III. Ancillary Service Providers


I. Potential Partnerships

Schatz Corsets of Sialkot produces a range of beautifully designed range of women’s corsets for export, including bespoke designs with intricate sequins and embroidery work for bridal wear, but no women work there. That is because the owner wants to employ women but cannot locate skilled women locally and providing transport will increase unit costs on very tight export margins and stiff Chinese competition.

Schatz Corsets produces corsets for women but not made by women Classique Textiles

Figure 2: Willingness to enter into partnership with MDF and utilise available workspaces for a women-only

stitching unit

Classique Textiles Faisalabad is a factory producing bed linen and stitched kitchen accessories for export.

They said:

“We are a small family run business and have plenty of orders for linen and kitchen

accessories. We want to employ more women but the export margins are just too small

to add the cost of transport. Also it takes about three months to train women on foot

pedalled machines and if they leave for family reasons that money is lost to us.”

Other potential partners are listed in the stakeholders section: The Designer Leather; Nova Leather;

Town Crier; MedicsLabs Pvt. Ltd; MediPak Pvt. Ltd.

These recommendations are based on participant willingness and capacity to employ more women, not

current MDF sector parameters or policies.


II. Public Policy Levers

Gender targets should not be just numbers

Government departments such as the Planning Commission Vision 2025 and TEVTA all seem to pay lip

service to “gender equality,” the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and WEE, but the emphasis is

on tick box measures and numbers on paper rather than targeted policies measured on qualitative as

well as quantitative bases. The result is that though

the TEVTA office board (in Figure 3) shows 174 out of

394 students in attendance as women, the standard

of vocational skills training is actually poor. When

asked whether they have mechanisms to test the

quality of outgoing student skills they said this was

not active. Additionally, the payment of a student

stipend often means that attendance is registered

and students leave the classrooms. Unofficially it is

widely acknowledged that public sector institutions

do not hire appropriately qualified teachers either – a

similar situation was reported about the NILT in

Karachi where modern imported machines lie un-

serviced and idle due to a lack of qualified teachers

and an inefficient administration.

Recommendation: Use influencing events specifically aimed at public sector to encourage and facilitate

results measurement, independent employer feedback and third-party monitoring and evaluation of

government policies.

III. Ancillary Service Providers

A: Skills Training

This represents an important area of further research to identify the gaps in training provision.

Recommendation: Independent results measurement and feedback to the government funded training

institutes are potential intervention points to improve course delivery, student attendance and industry

feedback.

B: Transport

This is usually largely outsourced by factories (except very large entities) to a local van driver who

provides the required number of mini vans or buses to pick and drop women workers (usually to their

homes or central pick and drop points). Larger entities who are located far from residential areas such as

Figure 3: Records from TEVTA


Leatherfield Pvt. Ltd tannery and leather garment stitching unit in Sialkot provide buses to workers (all

male) to ensure attendance and adherence to punctuality.

Given the preponderance of local small scale mini-van owners, different arrangements are possible. For

example, three mini-vans are provided by a former factory worker to MedicsLabs, as their factory is

located in a very inaccessible part of industrial Karachi, which has also suffered from serious security

issues in the recent past. The mini-van driver has leased three mini-vans and gets a monthly payment

from the factory for pick and drop services. He uses the vehicles during the rest of the day to do school

runs for local private schools. This ensures maximum utilisation of his vehicles, hassle-free transport for

the factory, reduction in overhead costs for the transport department, and employment generation for a

small scale entrepreneur.

Recommendation: Connect employers with small scale local transport providers and perpetuate this

model. Employers can be encouraged to subsidise this facility if they cannot bear the whole cost.

C: Childcare Facilities

During the research period, no child care providers were

located who were providing this as an organised service. This

is due to a lack of demand because:

• Day care is not usually a factor in a woman’s decision to go to work, as most low income women who desperately need to work are from joint family households.

• Young single women or middle aged women are more likely to enter the workforce than mothers with young children.

• Better off educated women also prefer to leave their children in the care of grandparents or extended family, even if they have separate housing.

• Child care services are not yet trusted or seen as a viable alternative to family care.

In a Sialkot stitching unit pictured here in Figure 4, over one hundred women work, but only four children are brought to the on-site child care facility. Recommendation: Focus on child care service

providers is not recommended unless there is an

identified requirement.

Even where facilities are provided

they are underutilised. At a large

textile garment factory in Karachi

the day care lay empty despite

more than 600 women working on

site. The employer provided a

nanny, toys and baby food but

only one woman used the facility

in the past five years during a

household emergency.

Figure 4: Day-care in Sialkot Figure 4: A day care in Sialkot


Chapter 4: WEE Workshops

I. Core Themes

II. Communicating WEE Benefits

III. Workshop Panellists

IV. Next Steps in WEE Campaign


I. Core Themes for Engagement

The following themes were highlighted in the video and workshops:

A. Benefits of employing women

B. What women need:

a. Safety at work

b. Transport facilitation

c. Skills training and development

C. Tackling negative societal attitudes against women leaving the home, or having careers, and

others sharing the burden of domestic duties

D. Future focus: women are vital for the Pakistani economy to be competitive and improve the

whole household’s living standards

II. Communicating WEE Benefits

Key Messages

A: Employing women makes good business sense

Video of Women at Work contained testimonials from employers that women are more productive, punctual and efficient. Panellists and attendees agreed with these positive employer perspectives.

Panellists from Servis, Footlib, MedicsLabs and MediPak reinforced this with personal experiences and said that employing more women makes for a more productive workforce and conducive workplace culture. The business case for employing women was highlighted so that employers see this as a business imperative and not as a nod to political correctness.

“It feels safe and secure

to not have men allowed

in our work area: we feel

more comfortable.”

Female worker,

MedicsLabs

Figure 5: Women working in segregated packing area

at MedicsLabs pharmaceutical factory in Karachi

“Having women workers in the

factory even improves the

behaviour of male workers: they

use less bad language and keep

a neater personal appearance.”

Mr S Ali, Employer Leather

Garment Manufacturer


B: Transport facilitation is an equaliser

When employers provide transport, it removes a huge barrier for women workers, ensures peace of mind, allows for a safe and harassment-free journey to work, reduces time spent commuting, and reduces expenses for women who are usually on minimum wage.

Employers also benefit as this provision reduces absenteeism, tardiness and family concerns about women safely getting to and from work. Employers should be encouraged to view transport provision as an equaliser rather than a special benefit for women.

C: Societal attitudes need to be challenged and changed to value women’s work, talent and aspirations

across all income levels

An estimated 70-80% of female graduates from the Pakistan Institute of Fashion Design (PIFD) do not

enter the workforce due to marriage or negative family attitudes about women who work. For the

families, an investment of one million rupees for the degree

seems to serve purposes other than a professional

qualification leading to a career. Even high income urban

families view a PIFD education as a way to improve their

daughters’ marriage prospects rather than career prospects,

thus interrupting their studies if a suitable match appears.

Therefore, PIFD fashion design graduates end up wearing

bridal fashion rather than making a career of it.

D: Pakistan’s economy needs women to be economically empowered to stay competitive

In this day and age, Pakistan cannot afford to ignore its youth bulge as well as half of its population that

is female. Hence engaging women in the workforce is no longer a prerogative but an imperative.

III. WEE Workshop Panellists

Lahore: Tuesday 25th July 2017

• Mr. Qadeer: General Manager Operations, Servis Muridke

• Mr. Wasim Zakaria: Footlib & PFMA Committee

• Ms. Tanya Bhutta: SMEDA Lahore

• Mr. Nasir Choudhry: Director, MediPak Ltd

“My friend and I share a taxi but it is

very expensive. He charges us Rs 1,500

each per month and we only get Rs

14,000 salary so that is a big chunk.

But we have to do it to ensure we have

a reliable way to get to work.”

Huma, Quality Control worker at Town

Crier - Label Manufacturer, Faisalabad

“Some even leave in the third or

fourth year if they get engaged or

married thus wasting a coveted spot

on the four-year degree course.”

PIFD Course Director


Karachi: Thursday 27th July 2017

• Mr. Shujaat Ali: CEO, The Designer Leather & Chairman of PLGMEA South

• Ms. Zeenia Shaukat: Researcher on labour issues in the textile sector, and journalist

• Ms. Nazish Shekha: CERC Consultant

• Mr. Mohammad Qayyum: CEO of MedicsLabs Pvt. Ltd

• Mr. Qadeer: General Manager Operations, Servis Muridke

IV. Next Steps in WEE Campaign

The purpose of the workshops was to engage the manufacturing sector in three key industries that

employ the largest proportion of women in Pakistan and to influence them to employ more women as a

business case and improve the manner in which they engage women.

Follow up interactions will be aimed at monitoring and evaluating how employers build upon the

workshop initiatives on their own and whether MDF can and should engage some of them as partners to

further the WEE programme.

MDF will continue engaging with stakeholders to gauge how to facilitate employer efforts either through

further workshops or as MDF partners.


REFERENCES UN Women Pakistan http://pakistanunwomen.org UN Women’s Economic Participation and Empowerment in Pakistan: Status Report 2016 ILO publication for excellent overview of labour legislation in Pakistan: Pakistan Decent Work Country Profile 2014 http://www.ilo.org/islamabad/whatwedo/publications/WCMS_316668/lang--en/index.htm National Commission on the Status of Women NCSW http://www.ncsw.gov.pk/ Ministry of Planning Development & Reform http://www.pc.gov.pk/ Vision 2025 & SDG’s Pakistan Credit Rating Agency http://www.pacra.com.pk/pages/research/web_sector_study/textile/Textile_Mar_11.pdf Ministry of Textile Industry http://www.textile.gov.pk/ Karachi Chamber of Commerce & Industry https://www.kcci.com.pk/ Sialkot Chamber of Commerce & Industry http://scci.com.pk/ Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry http://www.fcci.com.pk/ NOTE: All photographs have been taken by the author.

http://pakistanunwomen.org/

http://www.ilo.org/islamabad/whatwedo/publications/WCMS_316668/lang--en/index.htm

http://www.ncsw.gov.pk/

http://www.pc.gov.pk/

http://www.pacra.com.pk/pages/research/web_sector_study/textile/Textile_Mar_11.pdf

http://www.textile.gov.pk/

https://www.kcci.com.pk/

http://scci.com.pk/

http://www.fcci.com.pk/


APPENDIX

I. Interview Questionnaires

Stakeholder Engagement Workshops


I. Interview Questionnaires

Employer Questions

1. How many women employees do you have?

▪ What % of total?

▪ In which area of the business are the female workers?

▪ Segregated work area/eating/entrance/toilets

Details of which ancillary providers are available:

▪ Transport

▪ Day care

▪ Health care

▪ Training

▪ Financial services

2. What role do you think women can play in the workplace?

Can you quantify or explicitly state the benefit of hiring women?

3. Do you face any barriers when hiring women? Or do you anticipate any issues or challenges

when you think of hiring more women?

▪ External (market, local area, religious or cultural perceptions)

▪ Government or industry requirements/policies

▪ Internal organisational culture

4. Has a buyer ever enquired about the level of women’s employment at your company or

required any standard?

5. What would lead you to hire more women?

▪ Financial/donor support

▪ Productivity gains


▪ Gender balance/progressive brand/CSR

▪ Specific buyer requirement

6. Do you know of any business in or outside your industry which is a good role model for

employing women?

7. Would you be interested in partnering with other organisations in order to employ more female

workers?

Employee Questions (Female)

1. How long have you been working here?

2. Why did you decide to join the workforce?

3. Married/children/education level/family circumstances

4. What do you get?

▪ Pay (weekly/monthly)

▪ health care/day care/ leave/ meals (paid/subsidised)

▪ training

▪ transport

5. What do you like about working here?

▪ Income level

▪ Benefits

▪ Independence

▪ Family status

6. What would you like to see improve - further benefits/facilities?

7. What would make it easier to work here?

8. What is your family reaction to you working?

9. What would enable more women from your neighbourhood or relatives to start working at such

establishments?


10. Would you work more hours for increased pay?

11. Would you like training for the next level?

12. How many years do you see yourself working?

Employee Questions (Male)

1. How do/would you feel about working alongside female colleagues?

▪ What are the benefits of having women in the workplace?

▪ What are the challenges of working with women?

2. How would you feel about being supervised or managed by a female?

Public Sector/NGO/Associations Questions

1. What is your mission in this department/organisation?

2. What role do you see for female workers in your organisation’s mission?

3. What does the phrase “women’s economic empowerment” mean in your organisation?

4. What policies do you have to encourage businesses to employ more women?

5. Can you give me an example of a business you think is a good role model for providing

employment opportunities for women?

6. Why do you think Pakistan has fallen behind regional competitors like Bangladesh and Sri Lanka

in employing women in manufacturing?

7. What do you think is required to change this situation? External and internal factors.

8. Are you concerned that international brands are becoming more aware of gender issues?

9. Do you have any specific budgets allocated for women’s economic empowerment?

▪ Details of project and results if any

10. Has any NGO or international organisation/government department approached or partnered

with your department on women’s economic empowerment?

women’s economic empowerment in the manufacturing...

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