Mr. M L Shahani, Former Justice of the Sindh High Court, Mr. Muhammad Sharif, President PNFTU, Mr William Conklin, Field Representative, American Center for Solidarity, Mr. Jens Aarup, Project Manager, LO/FTF Council, Ladies and Gentlemen:

I am always honored and glad to visit the Solidarity House and the one very important reason for this is that among all the distinguished worker leaders we have in Pakistan, I admire, respect, and honor Mr. Muhammad Sharif the most. I have worked closely with him and I have always liked his moderate pragmatism, his pleasant demeanor, and his simple lifestyle. He is very concerned about the fate of Pakistan's workers and he believes that thru personal examples, sincere dialog, and gentle persuasion, the momentum to do good for his fellow human beings can be attained. His latest project, a school to provide quality education to the children of low-income families is applauded and I believe that it our duty as citizens to ensure that this project is successful and that it becomes a center of excellence. More importantly, this school must develop in such a way that other workers' federations emulate it too. On behalf of SITE Child Labor Bureau and in my capacity as its Chairman, I had promised at its inauguration, to cooperate with the school and we have done as required. I pledge to continue supporting this school too in the future. Today, I am proud to announce that the Cell is today presenting a heavy-duty water cooler alongwith a filter so that the children can get pure water to drink. The SITE Child Labor Bureau has so far donated about Rs 50,000 to the school in the shape of benches, water cooler, and cash.

Ladies and Gentlemen: I have been asked by Mr. Sharif to talk about WEBCOP. The Human Resources of any country are its most important assets. The proper development and growth of this asset is pivotal for the progress and prosperity of a nation. We have a formidable labor force that is skilled and competent, we have an effective labor force that is hardworking and result-oriented, and we have a strong labor force that has proved its capability in many respects. However, we have now felt that the management and workers bilateral relationship needs to be channelized in a more systematic and sustainable manner. We have now realized that there are grave external and domestic based issues that are confronting the country and are the prime causes for the downslide in the economy. We have now accepted that Pakistan can genuinely progress if there is a unity, a conformity of views, and a common understanding on a bipartisan basis between the two pivotal social partners, that is, the workers and the employers.

Therefore, keeping all these factors in view, the enlightened representatives of both the essential social partners held a marathon meeting on July 12, 2000 and a historic breakthrough was achieved and the WORKERS EMPLOYERS BILATERAL COUNCIL OF PAKISTAN (WEBCOP) was unanimously formed. The Founder Members of WEBCOP are:

Mr. Muhammad Sharif, Mr. S P Lodhi, Mr. Nabi Ahmed, Ms. Kaneez Fatima, Mr. Khursheed Ahmed, Prof. Shafi Malik, Mr. Saleem Raza, Mr. Khalil-ur-Rehman, Mr. Karamat Ali, Mr. Aziz Memon, Mr. Abdul Ghafoor Baloch, Mr. Waqar Memon, Mr. Gul Rehman, Mr. Rana Mahmood Ali Khan, Mr. Zaheer Taj, Mr. Zahoor Awan, Mr. Abdul Rahim Mirdad Khail, and Mr. Malik Muhammad Aslam. 

Mr. F K Siddiqui, Mr. U R Usmani, Prof. M Matin Khan, Mr. S Tanveer Muhammad, Mr. Majyd Aziz, Mr. Ahsan Ullah Khan, Mr. Zubair Habib, Mr. A H Haidari, Mian Tajammal Hussain, Haji Muhammad Javed, Mr. Pervez Malik, Mr. Razzak Bengali, Mr. M Yakub Karim, Mr. Arshad Tanweer, Mr. Aziz Memon, Mr. Hossain Malik, and Muhammad Mustafa Sharif.

Mr. M L Shahani, Mr. H N Akhtar, Mr. Hasan Bhutto, Raees Ahmed Jaffery, and Mr. Kamal Mansoor Alam.

The first meeting unanimously agreed that Mr. Ahsanullah Khan would be the Convenor and Ms. Kaneez Fatima would be the Co-Convenor. Prof. Shafi Malik was nominated the Secretary and Mr. U R Usmani was the unanimous choice for the post of Joint Secretary. The premises of the Skill Development Council located in SITE, Karachi would house the Secretariat of WEBCOP.

The members of WEBCOP formed a committee to prepare a Memorandum of Understanding who went about their task with determination. Their output is presented for the information of the audience and delegates.

1. The representatives of Employers and Workers, appreciating the challenges posed by Globalization to the national economy and feeling the need to meet the challenges through concerted efforts for accelerating industrial development and economic growth, having met at Karachi on 12^th day of July 2000, resolve to form and establish Workers and Employers Bilateral Council of Pakistan (WEBCOP), to promote the following aims and objects:

1. Generating employment opportunities and promoting employability of abundantly available workforce in the market;
2. Removing impediments in the way of speedy industrialization and sound industrial relations at the enterprise as well as at the national level;
3. Achieving a balance between the rights and obligations of industrial partners;
4. Developing a basis for wage increase in the organized sector without interference in the process of collective bargaining;
5. Promoting productivity and quality improvement efforts at the enterprise and national level in order to fully meet the challenges of globalization and other environmental changes;
6. Improving quality of life for the working class by establishing a linkage between the pace of economic development and quantum of welfare measures;
7. Developing at the enterprise level effective participative culture through bilateral consultation and dialogue on matters relating to industrial relations, productivity, safety, health, investment and socio-economic benefits;
8. Promoting agro-based industry with the purpose to obtain prosperity for the rural workers and improve their quality of life.

1. In order to achieve the aforesaid objective, it is resolved to closely work with each other in activating and extending full support to the tripartite bodies for performing their task efficiently in the best national interest, particularly in: 

• Tripartite Labor Standing Committee at the Federal Level
• Tripartite Labor Advisory Boards at Provincial Level
• National Minimum Wage Council
• National Productivity Council
• National Health and Safety Council

1. To provide a bipartite institutional framework for voluntary mediation, conciliation and arbitration of industrial dispute, without polarizing and politicizing the issue, in a practical and conducive environment. Necessary guidance and assistance will also be extended jointly in the matters relating to industrial relations and labor laws.
2. To make efforts for wage productivity linkages with cost of living index to keep an enterprise live and thriving.
3. To augment training and educational facilities with a view to upgrade the skill and knowledge of the workers. Management Development Programmes and Workers Education Activities shall be designed, organized and conducted by their own bodies.
4. To devise a code of conduct, keeping in view the existing National and International norms and obligations, the employers and workers will:

• Jointly work for improving efficiency and productivity of the enterprise and develop a system benefiting both the partners of the productivity gains.
• Respect the right of association and collective bargaining with due appreciation of their rights and obligations.
• Demonstrate mutual respect to obligations and rights of each other.

1. To achieve the minimum mutually acceptable reforms in the existing labor laws and lending full support and assistance to their simplification, rationalization, and codification.

Consistent with the above declared aims and objects of this Council, we hereby declare that we shall henceforth patronize, promote, and project Pakistany products and we enjoin upon all to BE PAKISTANY AND BUY PAKISTANY, in order to get out from foreign indebtedness and unfair conditionalities to achieve national dignity.

Ladies and Gentlemen, it is our fervent hope that the two social partners continue to display unanimity of views, understand each other's positions, and work for the glory of the motherland. The establishment of WEBCOP is the first step towards an enabling environment that will usher in lasting industrial peace, better working conditions, and improvement in the living status of the workers of Pakistan. Our prayers are that may Almighty Allah help us achieve our goals.

Thank you very much.