SHARP and EC / ISCOS – CISL
ISCOS (Trade Union Institute for Development Co-operation)
is an Italian NGO, promoted by CISL (Italian confederation
of trade unions) in 1983 with the aim of promoting solidarity
amongst Italian workers and the workers from Developing
countries, in order to achieve peace, democracy, and respect
for Human Rights. CISL, founded in 1950, is an organization
of 4.2 million members, representing, through professional
union structures, the employees from different sectors (agriculture,
industry, civil servant, services) and the pensioners, irrespective
of their political or religious affiliations.
ISCOS – CISL has been founded to support the trade
unions in playing their role of emancipating workers from
the operation of employers and defending their rights and
dignity. The international co-operation is an essential
element of this emancipation.
ISCOS started its activities immediately after its birth
and was formally recognized by Italian ministry of Foreign
Affairs in 1985.
ISCOS – CISL has its national headquarter in Rome
with 10 regional offices. This structure addresses the issues
of development through the cooperation of international
solidarity for education and awareness of its members. The
national headquarter promotes a co-ordinates the initiatives
of raising awareness and educational development, and it
is the interlocutor of public funding and international
organizations.
ISCOS – CISL is currently working in more than 30
countries of 4 continents; Asia, Africa, Europe, & South
America.
ISCOS – CISL started its activities in Pakistan in
1998 through bilateral cooperation with Former All Pakistan
Federation of Lab our (now Pakistan workers federation)
and since then it is involved in different development activities
in Pakistan.
SHARP being one of the proud partners of this esteemed
organization has been conducting trainings throughout Pakistan
for the promotion of workers rights under the project entitled,
“Strengthening Civil Society Participation to Promote
and Defend Workers rights”. Under this head SHARP
is conducting various activities to achieve the following
aims;
• To organize the unorganized labor force in formal
and informal sector.
• Elimination of child labor and abolition of bonded
labor in Pakistan.
• Rehabilitation activities for Afghan refugees,
health care project for Afghan refugees in different camps
of district Peshawar and district Mansehra, NWFP, and support
to the orphan children.
• Training of the NGOs’ / CSO's (Civil Society
Organizations) to create a network of local NGOs that can
implement activities of mobilization and information on
workers rights.
• Training of trade unions to improve their knowledge
on workers rights, with a sound gender approach, under existing
labor laws.
• Legal assistance to the workers organizations and
imparting legal education to workers with a view to create
paralegal among them, which will lessen their reliance on
commercial lawyers. Skills of paralegal in terms of legal
matters, social dialogue, improvement of working conditions
and positive relations with employers will enable trade
unions capability to shun off negative impression of these
organizations in society.
• Awareness of women rights given under UN Charter
and national laws.
• Building and maintaining a tent village in Balakot,
disaster management training to teachers and providing primary
school education to children in quake it areas of NWFP.
