Pakistan: Union secures hundreds of permanent jobs for casual workers at Nestlé Kabirwala

An agreement has been reached in Pakistan under which hundreds of casual jobs at the Nestle Kabirwala dairy plant will be converted to permanent jobs, finally resolving a long and difficult conflict. With the end of years of precarious employment hundreds of workers will not only enjoy job security for the first time, but will also be able to exercise their trade union rights.

“They told us we didn’t work for Nestlé,” said Ashfaq Butt, President of the Action Committee Nestlé Workers Kabirwala, who has worked for 7 years as a contract worker at the Kabirwala factory. “But now under this agreement we are recognized as working for Nestlé and can go to the factory as permanent workers for the first time.”

Sakhawat, who worked for 10 years as a contract worker and is a member of the Action Committee, said, “When we first made our demand for permanent jobs everyone told us we were naive and it was impossible. But the National Federation of Food, Beverages and Tobacco Workers (NFFBTW) and the IUF supported us and now we have done the impossible.”