A new study has revealed that labour rights abuses remained rampant in major textile factories in major production hubs — Karachi and Faisalabad — manufacturing healthcare exports to Europe.
The report was titled “Public money, private harm: The role of EU procurement in perpetuating labour violations: lessons from Pakistan and Sweden”. The 52-page study was conducted collaboratively by Swedwatch and local organisations, including AwazCDS-Pakistan and NowCommunities, building on testimonies of textile factory workers from Karachi and Faisalabad, where it revealed rampant labour rights violations, enabled by weak enforcement of EU procurement rules and labour laws.
It revealed that using social audits and certifications as a way of ensuring compliance “repeatedly fail to capture or remedy these violations, raising serious concerns about their efficacy.”
At the outset of the report launch in Karachi today, Executive Director NowCommunities, Farhat Parveen, outlined the issues faced by workers in both informal and formal sectors in Pakistan, including their absence from consensus, lack of social protection, maternity benefits, occupational health and safety, and dire working conditions, noting that limited legislation exists within the country to address their issues.
AwazCDS-Pakistan founder Zia-ur-Rehman detailed that the scope of the study centred around “the textile sector, particularly products exported to the EU and the situation of labour rights at the lowest tier of the supply chain.”
European states such as Sweden, in this case, rely heavily on textile healthcare imports from Pakistan, the report said, highlighting issues within the supply chain process.
“The study was conducted in two districts across nine textile mills, which export to Sweden in Faisalabad and Karachi. The aim was to examine the labour conditions, environmental codes, whether health and safety are taken into consideration, fair wages, and the right to unionisation.”
He explained that the study was based on focus group discussions, which engaged around 98 factory workers.
The report noted that the textile industry around the world was “particularly vulnerable to labour rights abuses, including low wages, precarious employment, poor working conditions, and gender-based pay gaps.”
It noted that the problem was made “pronounced” in countries like Pakistan, “where textile factories supply goods for European public contracting authorities”, including Sweden.
It noted that in textile industries in Karachi and Faisalabad, which are the major “production hubs” of the country, workers often “endure excessive hours, unsafe workplaces, lack of social protection, and an absence of formal employment contracts.”
It detailed that the abuses were “exacerbated” by the lack of enforcement of labour laws and the lack of implementation of EU procurement rules.
It noted that the rules had failed to “prevent human rights abuses” in the lower tier of production.
The study presented ten key findings across the areas of wage theft, exploitation, gender pay gap, lack of social security, and overreliance on social audits, among others.
Contractual exploitation fueling ‘rights abuse’
Rehman revealed that the workers employed at the textile factories under review in the study were not hired contractually, as a way for companies to “evade” responsibility.
He recalled that “many of the participants in the study told us that we are given a contractor’s contract, which is usually in English, and we are forced to sign it,” adding that the process was often shrouded in “secrecy.”
As per the report, “these contractors supply labour to numerous home-textile factories serving the Swedish public sector while also collaborating with other subcontractors — creating a complex web of informal employment arrangements.”
It further noted: “Although the Pakistani labour code recognises the role of private contractors in recruitment, it does not require them to ensure minimum wages or social security.
“As a result, informal contractual arrangements have come to dominate Pakistan’s labour market, enabling factory owners to bypass legal obligations and evade accountability. This system fuels widespread labour rights abuse,” it said.
Wage theft ‘pervasive’
Rehman expressed concern that the average worker at these textile factories was getting approximately Rs25,000 per month, lower than the government-mandated minimum wage of Rs37,000 as of June 2024.
Screengrab from report.
According to the report, “some factories display banners at their entrance stating that workers are paid the minimum wage by the first of each month. Yet, interviews revealed that these claims are often deceptive, with workers consistently receiving much lower pay.”
The report cited the account of a 38-year-old worker with 15 years of experience in Faisalabad’s textile sector, who was earning between Rs15,000–17,000 per month.
The AwazCDS-Pakistan founder called on European countries to notify living wages for countries involved in the downstream supply.
‘Stark’ gender pay gap
The study revealed that despite women working the same hours as their male counterparts, they earned as little as Rs6,000 at times.
Screengrab from report.
“Both men and women do the same kind of work [..] despite the fact that women are given lower wages than men,” Rehman said, adding that women were also not given “adequate training”.
“Most supervisory roles are given to men,” he said, quoting the participants of the study.
As per the report, “one female worker from Karachi shared [that] even when workers perform the same tasks, women and younger employees often face wage discrimination. The management claims it’s based on performance, but the bias is evident.”
‘Significant’ barriers to unionisation
The report, in its findings, revealed that unions were often “prohibited”, and the association of a worker with a union could result in “severe repercussions such as immediate dismissal.”
Screengrab from report.
NowCommunities director Parveen told the participants that “employers view unions as something that is formed in opposition to them.”
She added that “even registering to form a union was extremely challenging.”
“And when they do try to unionise, they are fired,” she continued.
“According to the ITUC Global Rights Index 2024, Pakistani law lacks explicit protections against anti-union discrimination, leaving workers vulnerable to retaliation for union activities,” the report noted.
“The index ranks Pakistan among the ‘worst countries in the world to work in’, which means that while certain rights exist on paper, workers often have no real access to them, leaving them exposed to unfair labour practices,” it said.
The findings also revealed that a pattern of “overreliance on social audits”, which often failed to “detect” human rights abuses in the sector.
The report said: “factories are meticulously staged before audits take place —workspaces are cleaned, health and safety gear like masks and gloves are distributed, and banners proclaim that minimum wages are paid on time.”
However, these arrangements are only made during the audits and abandoned afterwards.
The study revealed that workers in Karachi described “how on audit days, gatekeepers bar outspoken employees from entering the factory, while entire sections may be shut down under the pretext of technical issues.”
The findings also revealed poor occupational health and safety within the factories, excessive working hours, lack of social security.
Detailing the report’s recommendations, Rehman called on the government to “align labour laws with international standards”, noting that most factory workers were not aware of the laws.
He also called for the need for women factory inspectors.
“They will see if there is discrimination against women or sexual harassment, and if the factory has a sexual harassment committee in place,” he said.
Rehman, citing the report, suggested that “it was hard for workers to lodge complaints without facing repercussions, hence some digital portal should be launched where they can report violations anonymously.”
He also noted that there was a “severe lack of available data”, stressing that the data of labour workers should be published annually.
There should be protective mechanisms for whistleblowers, the gender pay gap should be addressed, he said.
The AwazCDS-Pakistan founder called for a need for “collaboration between labour unions, federations, and NGOs” in negotiations with the state.
