According to a report titled ‘Status of Labour Rights in Pakistan: 2014’ published by the Pakistan Institute of Labour Education and Research (Piler) on 30 April 2015, only one per cent of Pakistan’s labour force is unionised. Other organisations give alternative statistics, but all show that the level of union membership is extremely low. During a May Day rally the General Secretary of the All Pakistan Trade Unions Federation (APTUF) Aima Mehmood claimed five per cent of workers in the nation were unionised while the figure for women stood one per cent. Some put the figure at around two per cent.
Piler, the APTUF and others blame the low level of unionisation on weak law enforcement and the failure to respect ILO standards. The prevalence of the informal sector has a major impact. Gul Rehman, the president of the Workers Right Movement, speaking at a rally on 7 October 2015 to mark the World Day for Decent Work, said that more than 75 per cent of the labour force in Pakistan was working in informal sector where the contract system and involvement of third party contractors had deprived them of their basic rights. The continued existence of bonded labour also has an influence, as does the attitude of employers who simply ignore applications for union recognition.