About Us

Our Story

Sanitation workers are the workers who, from time immemorial, have been engaged in cleaning work—from maintaining cities and public spaces in extremely dirty and deplorable conditions to providing sanitation services in individual households, often as a traditional or caste-based occupation. After the tradition of dividing society into different castes based on occupation was established during the Malla period, sanitation workers were placed among the so-called “untouchable” and marginalized communities. For generations, these workers have faced oppression, discrimination, injustice, and exploitation. However, there have been very few efforts to speak on their behalf and work toward freeing them from such oppression. Sanitation workers have traditionally lived together as communities in many metropolitan cities as well as in small towns and settlements. With the objective of protecting their occupational rights and interests, collectively bargaining with the concerned authorities, and raising awareness within the community about widespread inequalities, illiteracy, harmful traditional practices, and social discrimination in the sanitation sector, the Nepal Independent Sanitation Workers Union was established on 1 Ashadh 2047 B.S. at Sabal Bahal. The Nepal Independent Sanitation Workers Trade Union was registered with the Labour Department of His Majesty’s Government on 29 Baisakh 2052 B.S., under the Trade Union Act, 2049 B.S., becoming the 11th national trade union federation/organization registered under the Act. The Union is affiliated with the General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT), the largest trade union federation in Nepal. The city belongs to all of us. Let us come together to make our cities clean, beautiful, and healthy.