Every year on the first of May, the world stops to honour those who build it: the masons, the mill workers, the seamstresses, the sanitation crews—the millions of hands without which no economy moves. In Pakistan, Labour Day carries special weight. This is a country where the working class is not a statistical category. It is the backbone of the nation.
As we celebrate May Day in 2026, it is prudent for us to reflect, not necessarily with any sense of nostalgia, but with honesty, on the progress that Pakistan has made since its independence in 1947.
Upon attaining independence in 1947, the newly formed country did not begin with a blank slate. Instead, it inherited several labour laws enacted by the British prior to independence. These include the Trade Unions Act 1926, the Factories Act 1934, the Industrial Disputes Act 1947, and the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act 1946.
For their time, these laws were progressive. They allowed workers to form trade unions in all sectors except the armed forces and police. They granted workers the right to collective bargaining and established early standards for dispute resolution.
On the very day Pakistan was born, it took a defining step by joining the International Labour Organization (ILO). That founding membership was not symbolic; it was a statement of intent. Pakistan, even in its infancy, placed workers’ dignity among its national priorities.
The first formal Labour Policy was announced in 1955. Critics called it a ‘paper policy.’ Perhaps. However, it established a precedent that the Pakistani state owed its workers a considered framework. Under General Ayub Khan’s era, the Industrial Disputes Ordinance of 1959 reshaped the labour landscape. The government expanded the definition of public utility services and tightened control over strikes. For workers in those industries, it was a step back, but the period also saw rapid industrialisation. Urban factories grew, and a new industrial labour force began to take shape.
In 1965, the Provincial Employees Social Security Ordinance was introduced, marking the beginning of a social safety network for workers in Pakistan. It provided coverage for illness, maternity, employment injuries, and death.
The Labour Policy of 1969, announced under Air Marshal Noor Khan, marked a genuine leap. For the first time, collective bargaining was formally recognised as a workers’ right, emanating from Article 17(1) of the Constitution. The Industrial Relations Ordinance of 1969 made this concrete. Workers could now determine their collective bargaining agent through a secret ballot and had a mechanism to negotiate wages and conditions as a unified force.
No honest account of Pakistan’s labour history can omit Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and the Labour Policy of 1972. It was, by any measure, the most comprehensive package of workers’ rights in the country’s history.
The reforms guaranteed workers their fundamental rights of freedom of association and collective bargaining. They provided greater job security and introduced workers’ participation in factory management at 20 percent. Labour courts were established to provide workers with swift justice. The Workmen’s Welfare Ordinance created funds for housing, education, and other facilities. The Employees’ Old-Age Benefits Act introduced the country’s first pension system for workers. Profit-sharing was expanded, increasing workers’ share from two percent to four percent. Group insurance and gratuity benefits were also strengthened.
Labour Day was declared a public holiday in Pakistan in 1972. This was a deliberate choice. Pakistan showed solidarity with international labour by commemorating May 1, the day when workers in Chicago fought for the eight-hour workday.
The 18th Constitutional Amendment Act of 2010 devolved responsibility for labour legislation to provincial governments. Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan were empowered to create their own policies. Within two years, Sindh enacted a Home-Based Workers Bill, extending protection to domestic workers. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa followed suit in 2021, and Punjab passed its own Home-Based Workers Act in 2023. This marked a turning point, granting legal recognition to women working from home on a piece-rate basis without benefits.
In addition, Pakistan introduced the Maternity and Paternity Leave Act. Under this law, women are entitled to up to 180 days of leave during childbirth, while men can take 30 days of paternity leave.
The most significant recent development in Pakistan’s labour landscape is the Punjab Labour Code 2026, enacted on February 4, 2026. It is not an exaggeration to call it historic.
The rights of fixed-term employees are now aligned with those of permanent employees based on length of service, while gratuity eligibility for contract workers has been reduced from five years to one year of continuous service. Provisions for free annual medical examinations apply to workers above 40 years of age, and safety officers must be appointed in high-risk industrial establishments. Fines for employing child labour or failing to ensure safety have been increased to up to PKR 500,000. The minimum wage is calculated based on consumption needs, including 2,700 calories per person per day, as well as housing, clothing, and education. Workers can register and monitor grievances through an online system, with mandatory conciliation prior to court proceedings. For women, night shift work is permitted with safe transport and security; establishments employing more than 30 women must provide daycare facilities, and equal pay for equal work is mandated.
One of the most significant aspects of the Punjab Labour Code 2026 is the inclusion of agricultural workers. Their incorporation marks formal recognition as rights-bearing employees.
As a member state of the ILO since 1947, Pakistan has ratified 36 conventions of the International Labour Organization. In March 2025, Pakistan ratified three additional instruments, including the 2014 Protocol to the Forced Labour Convention, the Maritime Labour Convention, and the Labour Statistics Convention. Pakistan has also launched its first Gender Pay Gap Report in collaboration with the ILO. The report not only documents disparities but also outlines a National Action Plan with concrete recommendations to align national legislation with international equal pay standards.
In 2025, during Labour Day celebrations, the National Industrial Relations Commission, in collaboration with the International Labour Organization, organised an international conference titled “Workers and Employers: Navigating Change Through Social Dialogue.” The aim was to strengthen industrial relations.
Pakistan’s workers are not waiting for rescue. They are already contributing. They build the roads, stitch exports, operate machines, tend fields, and raise the next generation. They do not ask for sympathy; they ask for systems that work.
Pakistan has been building those systems—incrementally, but consistently. This May Day, as trade unions march and policymakers make promises, the most credible commitment is not rhetoric. It is the Punjab Labour Card in a worker’s hand. It is a complaint filed at 2 a.m. through a digital portal and resolved within 30 days. It is the agricultural labourer in Punjab who, for the first time in the country’s history, is legally recognised as a worker with rights.
