Months before the tragic fire at Hashem Foods factory, management ignored notices issued by the fire services department concerning the lack of fire safety and in particular the lack of fire-fighting equipment. At that time the inspectors saw there was child labour in the factory.
When inspectors from the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) visited the factory on June 8, 2021, to inspect health and safety conditions, they also observed child labour blatantly exploited in the factory. DIFE then issued a notice to the factory management regarding the employment of child labour in violation of the law. Hashem Foods management and its parent company Sajeeb Group simply ignored these notices and no action was taken by any of the government authorities.
A week later the fire broke out in the factory fueled by highly flammable chemicals and plastic packaging stored on the second floor, while doors and exits on the third floor were blocked. An unknown number of workers – including children – died or were seriously injured. Three of the children who jumped from the third floor are hospitalized in critical condition.
Although the official death toll is 52, it should be noted that this was announced on the morning of Friday July 9 before the fire was extinguished and a full day before fire fighters could access the fourth and fifth floors.
Just one week before the tragic fire at Hashem Foods factory workers held a protest action over unpaid wages and unpaid overtime. The Daily Inqilab interviewed protesting workers on July 1, 2021, who said, “the higher authorities of the factory threatened to beat and dismiss the workers if they talked about overtime, arrears of salary and salary increase.”
Companies with business relationships with Hashem Foods, including Shezan International and Kolson Lotte in Pakistan, Idilia Foods from Spain and US-based Mondelez International, clearly failed in their human rights due diligence. Despite requests by IUF-affiliated trade unions to discuss this tragedy and their responsibility, they have refused to respond.