The Protection Against Harassment of Women at Work (Amendment) Act, 2022, was notified and legally enacted into law on Friday, according to the Ministry of Human Rights.
On its official Twitter account, the ministry stated, “It marks a major step in strengthening and expanding the reach of the law.”
Our Protection against Harassment of Women at the Workplace (Amendment) Act, 2022 was notified today & has officially become law.
It marks an important step in strengthening & increasing the ambit of the law. Access it here: https://t.co/Wk1TeEywtk pic.twitter.com/qo2Q5kViY1— Ministry of Human Rights (@mohrpakistan) January 28, 2022
The bill was enacted by the National Assembly earlier this month after revisions to the legislation were authorised by the upper house of parliament.
The measure obtained the president’s assent on January 21 and will go into effect immediately, according to an official document provided by the human rights ministry.
The bill was created by Pakistan’s Ministry of Human Rights in order to enhance women’s involvement in the workforce and to close gaps in the country’s anti-harassment legislation.
The bill expands the law’s reach and scope to include specific professions and employment patterns that aren’t explicitly included in present laws, and it protects those engaged in all sorts of labour – formal and informal – from harassment.
In order to provide greater clarification on the issue, the Act will also provide clarity on the many types of harassment that occur at work.
The bill aims to clarify the Act’s definitions, notably those of “complainant,” “employee,” “employer,” “harassment,” and “workplace,” to eliminate misunderstandings that have arisen in the past, and to broaden the term of “workplace” to cover all types and categories of work.
The bill also attempts to establish deadlines for appeals against the Ombudsman’s orders under the Act.
