Literature Review on Working Conditions in the Ready-made Garment Industry of Bangladesh?

• Author: Ferdous Ahamed
• Position: Ph.D student. Graduate School of Management, Faculty of Law and Management

Methodology

This research seeks to analyse and investigate the current status and examine working conditions in the Bangladesh ready-made garment sector. An extensive literature survey has been undertaken in order to review the historical perspective, growth and development of the garments industry, working conditions and environment, labour standards and labour rights issues, as well as this lack of Social compliance. Therefore the research objective has been set to what extent can Social compliance be incorporated in the RMG sector?

Introduction

The RMG industry in Bangladesh has been the key export division and the highest source of foreign exchange for the last 25 years. Despite a rather late start in the world market (approximately 1976), Bangladesh soon established a reputation in the world market, with garments becoming one of the country’s main export sectors (Uddin, S. and Jahed, 2007). Sri Lanka was the main exporter in South Asia, with India as its main competitor, but the civil war in Sri Lanka from July 1983 to May 2009 wrecked that country’s garments industry, and international buyers and investors diverted their attention to Bangladesh (Abedin M.J., 2005; Hasnain, 2006; Buncombe, 2009). As a result, the garments sector in Bangladesh expanded with unprecedented success. In spite of these poor working conditions and the lack of Social compliance continues to be a cause for serious concern. Since May 2006, the Bangladesh RMGI has been beset with very serious labour unrest, resulting in large-scale damage to garments factories by the workers and at times threatening the very existence of this industry.

The major disputes concern wages, working hours, appointment procedures, forced labour, child labour, health and safety, security, gender discrimination and sexual harassment, and trade unionism. Non-compliance of workplace health, safety and security regulations lead to hazardous work environments in which many workers become sick or injured, or lose their lives through accidents, fires and stampedes (Delap E., 2001). Overall, according to a monitoring report by the Fair Labour Association (2005, cited in Bansari, 2010) entitled Workplace Code of Conduct Violations in Clothing Factories, Bangladesh performs poorly compared with other Asian countries in the areas of awareness of labour standard codes, forced labour, and harassment, although violations of working hour standards are slightly lower than the other Asian countries except China. However, labour standards in the RMG sector in Bangladesh are generally considered to be poor, they are lower than in comparable countries (Murshid, Salma, Milford and Wiig, 2003). As a result, the RMG industries in Bangladesh have been facing considerable pressure from international buyers for compliance with their Codes of Conduct.

The ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work (1998) contains minimum labour standards (ILO, 2006). The ILO governing body has developed eight core conventions, covering four fundamental principles and rights: freedom of association and the effective recognition of the right to collective bargaining; the elimination of all forms of forced or compulsory labour; the effective abolition of child labour; and the elimination of discrimination in respect of employment and occupation (ILO, 2000). As a signatory to the ILO conventions Bangladesh has ratified the ILO core conventions, but a survey undertaken by Bansari in 2007 found that implementation is poor, and that compliance with international labour standards has declined in several areas, especially union rights, anti-discrimination provisions, and other labour standards related to wages and hours (Bansari, 2010).

Many researchers have investigated the garments industry in Bangladesh. In this research, labour rights and labour standards, fair labour practices as well as working conditions have received the greatest attention. In Bangladesh, working conditions in the RMG sector are often deplorable (Majumder and Begum, 1999; Shimu, 1999; Mondal, 2000; Partima and Begum, 2000; Begum S., 2001; Absar, S.S. and Kumar A., 2006; SDNP, 2003; BILS, 2003; UNDP, 2003; Kabeer N., 2004; ILO-NATLEX, 2005; Muhammad A., 2006; Bansari N., 2010 and others). Recruitment policies are highly informal compared to the western standards. This is mostly due to an abundance of cheap labour in Bangladesh. The majority of workers in the RMG industry are unskilled and do not have formal appointments or contracts. They are therefore vulnerable to losing their jobs at any time. However, fear of losing their jobs and lack of alternative job opportunities compel workers to continue in unsatisfactory employment (Bansari, 2010). There is no regular weekly day off, job security, social security, gratuity or provident fund for the workers (SDNP, 2003). Absence of reward, lack of training facilities and rare compensation are growing dissatisfaction among them (DWP, 2000). Added to this, garments workers are not given any fringe benefits, including accommodation allowance, health care, emergency funds, or transportation (Muhammad A., 2006), even though they are legally entitled to some of these benefits, such as maternity leave.

Excessive daily working hours are one of the most common labour standards problems in Bangladesh (Absar S.S, 2001). Hours worked in the garments industry are longer than elsewhere in the manufacturing sector, including the export manufacturing sector, and workers sometimes work all night to meet delivery deadlines. Despite international standards proscribing a maximum of 10 hours’ work per day and 6 days per week, workers in Bangladesh are allegedly forced to work 14 to 16 hours a day and seven days in a week (ILO-NATLEX, 2005).

Moreover workers are paid very badly for long hours (Absar, S.S. and Kumar A., 2006). The wage level in the RMG industry is low for both males and females, compared with workers in similar categories in other sectors (Khandker, 2002). According to Kabeer and Mahmud (2004), RMG workers are paid the lowest wages in Bangladesh, US$0.15 per hour, half of that paid to the next lowest, the RMG workers in Nepal who earn US$0.30. Absar, S.S. (2001) noted that there is no law providing a national minimum wage in the Bangladeshi garments industry. Although the government, garments owners and workers have decided on a salary structure (see appendix - A), most RMG workers receive the minimum monthly wage (Repon and Ahamed, 2006). Such low wages compel the garments workers to live in inhuman conditions. However, payment of wages in many cases is late or irregular. According to Kumar (2006), several factories in Bangladesh pay their workers’ wages two months or more lately. Many factories keep one month’s payment of overtime earnings as security money, which in most cases the workers do not get back.

While these garments workers’ total monthly take-home pay is not the lowest in the manufacturing sector, they have to work very long hours for it; overtime is imposed and in some cases not rewarded, making the hourly returns to their labour extremely low. Rates of overtime payment are not fixed. Workers are paid very badly for these long hours (Absar S.S., 2001; Kumar A., 2006) usually only half as much for overtime work as for normal hours, unless there are high profits from orders, or high demands to fill new work orders (Shimu, 1999; Mondal, 2000; Kabeer N., 2004). To use the working hours efficiently, some employers set production targets for the workers. Workers are given a quota to fulfill. When they are unable to fulfill their quota during work hours, they have to stay behind and work without pay (Paul-Majumder and Begum, 1999). In a field survey undertaken by Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS, 2003), 72 respondents (60%) stated that payment of overtime was not regular, 28 respondents (23%) complained that overtime was not paid at all, and only sixteen respondents (13%) showed satisfaction regarding the payment of overtime and the remaining 4% remained silent on the matter (Ahamed F., 2011).

Continuous work schedule, wage penalties, physical and verbal abuse are common. Women workers face physical abuse and sexual harassment inside as well as outside the factories, but management does not ensure the security of women workers. Workers also often accuse supervisors, linemen, line chiefs, and production managers of the following: pulling hair, slapping, hitting, stroking, touching the body, and even kissing workers as the latter sit at their machines (Partima and Begum, 2000). In all these cases women suffer embarrassment, humiliation, and even physical harm, but offenders are rarely punished and the victims often face trouble after complaining (Bansari, 2010). Alam (2004) suggested regulatory measures and its strict implementation and monitoring by the government agency that could overcome work place in security problem of garments workers in Bangladesh.

In addition, some women workers report sexual harassment on their way home from work, especially late at night. Despite restrictions on night work for female workers, they are still forced to work overtime, often into the night (Kabeer, 2001). Most women work until after dark, there are no safety arrangements for them, no transportation facilities and no accommodation at the factories. As a result, they frequently feel frightened and insecure, and for good reason: many female garments workers are abused or even raped by criminals who specialise in preying on them (Shimu, 1999; Mondal, 2000; Kabeer N., 2004).

The workplaces are sweatshops, more like prisons than factories, with no fixed hours, regular breaks or days off (Rashid M.A., 2006; Meghbarta, 2008). The workers, sometimes including children (see below: Child labour), are frequently locked in at the beginning of the morning shift...