Cabinet approves important amendments to anti harassment laws

• Cabinet has approved the Harassment of Women at Workplace Amendment Bill 2021, according to human rights minister.
  
• The bill will now be laid before National Assembly for further approval and implementation.
• Mazari says on Twitter the bill seeks to close gaps in original law, especially in relation to the workplace.
• Amendments seek to extend protection to various forms of harassment at work without any gender discrimination.
  

Cabinet has approved the Harassment of Women at Workplace (Amendment) Bill 2021, which will now be laid before the National Assembly for further approval and implementation, Federal Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari confirmed on Friday.

The minister on Twitter said the bill seeks to close gaps in the original law, especially in relation to the definition of a “workplace”.

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“After approval from CCLC yesterday, cabinet gave approval to our bill The Harassment of Women at Workplace (Amendment) Bill 2021 which seeks to close the gaps in the original law especially in relation to “workplace”. [We] will be laying it before NA now,” the minister wrote on Twitter.

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“The amendment is aimed to fill gaps and remove lacunae and anomalies in order provide protection [from different] forms of harassment at work without any gender discrimination,” reads the text of the Women at Workplace (Amendment) Bill 2021.

“Through this amendment law, the scope of the definitions of harassment, employees, and workers has been enhanced to provide protection to a wide array of employees workers in both the formal and informal sectors as well as to students/trainees, from all forms of harassment at work and in pursuit of studies/vocational training,” it added.