Call to reserve seats for trade union members in parliament

Parliament seats must be reserved for trade union leaders and representatives, according to a prominent trade union leader. General Federation of Bahrain Trade Unions (GFBTU) General Secretary Hasan Alhalwachi has said that the directive on restricting trade union representatives from running for parliament seats goes against the interest of the labour sector. According to him, trade union leaders can be a strong voice for the people as trade unions exist to support the cause of employees, which is the majority of the people.

He said that the law restricting trade union representatives from running for the parliament posts must be amended. “Why should there not be a representative for the trade unions in the parliament when we are taking care of the rights of a large part of the population? “By being in the parliament, we will be able to work to address the issues faced by the workers. As we enter a period of VAT and other new measures being introduced, it is important that workers’ issues are represented adequately. “Recently, we had huge debates in the parliament about the pension law.

This is a subject in which trade unions have greater expertise and could provide our inputs, but unfortunately we weren’t able to do. “By representing the workers, trade unions are representing the people themselves. We have a responsibility to support the workers, businesses and the economy.”

Mr. Alhalwachi said that seats should be reserved for trade unions at the parliament. “The candidates representing the trade unions can convey the views at the behest of labour community at the parliament. “At present, the labour sector is under-represented at the parliament. Unions need bigger platform to work with the authorities on implementing measures that would bring welfare to the working class. “As of now, labour unions have a very limited role and we would like to see a change happening.” The union leader said that reserving seats in the parliament will definitely expand the horizons of trade unions.