Strength in numbers: Some results by the WSM partners in Bangladesh in 2023

Labour rights: 102.878 people, of which 50% women and 9% younger than 35 years, were involved in the services by the partners to improve their working conditions. 

• 200.000 workers increased their awareness on labour standards and especially the minimum wages for the garment sector
• 3.864 workers per year were organised to increase membership
• 154 union members received basic training and 139 union leaders advanced training on labour rights and collective bargaining 
• 859 garment sector union members received legal assistance

Health

• Almost 149.119 members, of which 61% women increased their awareness about health and hygiene, family planning, health related messages, gender policy and rights.
• 32.245 garment workers and vulnerable people, of which over half were women, were organised to join the health insurance of GK.
• 41 women received basic training as a traditional birth attendee, and 127 members received training to work as a paramedic. 94 paramedics of which 73 are women, are trained to promote health insurance to the general public.
• Nearly 23.753 people received medical advice through specialised health camps, preventive care programs and were supplied with medicines, of which 15.937 are women. 7.286 garment workers, of which 4.772 women, received medical advice aid and support through health camps and health screenings.

Social security

• 271.614 workers, of which 140.858 are women and 131.295 under 35 years are informed about social security through media, poster and leaflets.
• 61 workers, of which 38 women and 60 under 35 years, were part of two basic trainings on social security.

Vocational training: 127 people, of which 97% women and  all under 35 years received vocational skill training through GK, on computer skills, women driving and to work as a paramedic.

Social economy: especially focusing on elderly, 100 seniors were supported through social economy initiative to ensure betterment of health, of which 63 were elderly women.

224 members of BSPAN were mobilised for advocacy actions during national days and 65 BSPAN members interacted with policy makers to promote access to social protection  and to ratify ILO Convention 102 on minimum standards for social security. 

Learning: 1.065 members increased their awareness on social security, shared lessons and experiences. 49 BSPAN members received  training on OSH as fundamental rights and how to use  communication and social dialogue for SP Campaign.

Sexual harassment recorded on cellphone of garment workers - Bangladesh, 2022

TESTIMONIES

Md. Amzad, 24 years old from Shariatpur, joined Ratul Fabrics Ltd on February 2019 with a basic salary of BDT 6.100 or 50€. While working there, the workers decided to organize and form a labor union so they filled the required forms to register the union in October 2021. But while the request was being processed by the authorities, the factory authorities stopped the organizers from entering and fired them, including Amzad. Amzad submitted a grievance letter to the management which stayed without response. He then turned to NGWF which offered him legal assistance and eventually, Md. Amzad got BDT 51.794 compensation and was reinstated.

A garment worker (name not used to remain anonymous) at a factory called Shareem Group Textiles in Ashulia, near Dhaka. Though she is married, she was pressured into sex with one of the supervisors. He used his cellphone to record images and shared it with two other supervisors who threatened to share this on social media and with her husband if she didn’t also satisfy them. 

She sought NGWF support and with their help, filed a case against the supervisor at the local police station.

While initially, the police was not helpful and she was even fired from her job, eventually the continued pressure from the union organizer led the management to fire the first supervisor and reprimanding the two other. However, she still remains without a job…

Some results by intervention strategy...

Vocational training: 117 people, of which 80% women and  all under 35 years received vocational skill training through GK, on computer skills, women driving and to work as a paramedic.

Social economy: especially focusing on elderly, 80 seniors were supported through social economy initiative to ensure betterment of health, of which 51 were elderly women.

Labour rights: 182.844 people, of which 55% women and 80% younger than 35 years, were involved in the services by the partners to improve their working conditions. 

• 176.757 workers increased their awareness on labour standards and especially the minimum wages for the garment sector
• 4.589 workers per year were organised to increase membership
• 185 union members received basic training on labour rights
• 133 union leaders received advanced training on collective bargaining 
• 850 garment sector union members received legal assistance

Health and social protection law

• Almost 150.000 members, of which 2/3 are women increased their awareness about health and hygiene, family planning, health related messages, gender policy and rights.
• 30.300 garment workers and vulnerable people, of which over half were women, were organised to join the health insurance of GK.
• 40 women received basic training as a traditional birth attendee, and 60 members received training to work as a paramedic. 80 paramedics of which 60 are women, are trained to promote health insurance to the general public.
• Nearly 25.000 people received medical advice through specialised health camps, preventive care programs and were supplied with medicines, of which 18.830 are women. 7.745 garment workers, of which 5.865 women, received medical advice aid and support through health camps and health screenings.

Social security

• 170.000 workers, of which 94.000 are women and 134.300 under 35 years are informed about social security through media, poster and leaflets.
• 56 workers, of which 35 women and 50 under 35 years, were part of two basic trainings on social security.

Anniversary Rana Plaza: Demand to ensure safe working environment in the garment sector

Today is that black, tragic day that we remember the factory collapse and killing of over 1.100 workers on 24th April at Rana Plaza in Savar, shocking Bangladesh and the world. WSM partner National Garment Workers Federation (NGWF) arranged a month-long campaign and programs for Rana Plaza Workers' Murder Day, to lobby for safer working environment in the garment industry.

As part of this month-long program "Rana Plaza, Tazreen - Never Again", a Workers Rally and a flower wreath were held at the Rana Plaza site and monument on Sunday, 24th April, 2022 at 10.30.

Through the rally, workers demanded a safe workplace for all garment workers in Bangladesh, so that tragedy like Rana Plaza or the Tazreen fire never happen again. NGWF arranged a short assembly before the start of the rally and speeches were given by the central leaders, Rafikul Islam Rafik, Mrs Nasima Akter, Md Kabir Hosssain, Md Faridul Islam, Md Faruk Khan, Sweety Sultana etc.

As the pandemic closed their doors on Bangladeshi garment workers, trade unions step up

The Garment Workers’ Federation NGWF focuses on labour standards and social security for the 2 million Bangladeshi textile workers, mostly women. Over 2.600 workers joined the trade union, and almost 250 received training regarding labour rights and collective bargaining. Over 1.000 workers received legal aid and more than 600 publicly advocated for better working conditions in Bangladesh through rallies, hunger strikes, human chains, memoranda handovers to the government, etc.). Over 200.000 workers were sensitized regarding social security schemes through posters and leaflets and 150.000 workers were reached through their media releases regarding the situation and rights of garment workers. 

Khadija, 26 year old, came to Dhaka in 2015 and started work as an Assistant Operator with 5,300BDT salary. She is from an impoverished family and struggled financially during her life. When she joined in her job in 2015, she didn’t know anything about her rights, about her different types of benefits i.e. work hours, overtime benefits, maternity leaves and benefits, workplace health and safety issues, gender violence etc. As a result, she suffered different types of abuse by factory management who used slang and sometimes beat her. When becoming a member of NGWF, she regularly attended the meetings and training programs relating to Gender Training, Workplace Health & Safety Training, Collective Bargaining Training, Labour Rights Training. Afterwards, she started participating in public demonstrations. This not only helped her improve her working conditions and wages, she shared her knowledge with other workers, got more members and formed a factory union which got registered in November 2020. Khadija is now getting her wage properly and can better support her family. She is very motivated to continue organizing and her goal is to strengthen the union to ensure decent wages and also to stop gender discrimination.

Garment workers, health, elderly - Bangladesh in 2019

“My name is Tahmina and I’m 25 years old. I worked as a garment worker for a 5.300BDT salary (58 EUR) per month but later, I became an operator in another factory and there I received 7,300BDT (80 EUR) as monthly salary. In 2015, I became a member of NGWF and attended several trainings, meetings and processions. I learned about the rights of workers and received women leadership training. In 2017, I started to organize workers by myself and in July I was elected secretary of our union. In 2019 however, I was fired verbally without any further notice from the factory. One month later, a grievance notice was sent to me for legal payment of 105,838BDT (1,150 EUR) to the factory management. I filed a case against them with the help of NGWF and their Legal Aid. The case was solved and I received 100,000BDT (1,087 EUR) as compensation. With that money, I bought some land for farming. I feel honored to be a member of NGWF and my dream is to grow awareness about labor rights among workers”.

First, NGWF is helping its garment workers members through legal aid assistance and advocates for better working conditions in Bangladesh through rallies, hunger strikes, human chains, memoranda handovers to the government, etc). In total, 62.330 members have improved their existing job, for example through basic training on labor rights and advanced training on collective bargaining. NGWF is also helping their members to get better social security coverage. Over 100.000 workers (67% women and 84% youngsters) were made more aware about social security through posters and leaflets and 55.000 workers were reached through their media releases regarding the situation and rights of garment workers. Many of the staff and members of NGWF are young workers, since they focus on youth leadership and development.

I am Sumi from Bhola Barishal in Bangladesh. I am 25 years old. I was forced by my parents to marry at the age of 17. As a day laborer, my husband hardly had any work. At that time, we could only eat one meal a day. I could not take care for my family, so I went to Dhaka on my own. There, I joined a button factory at the age of 19, which my husband also joined later. After working there for a couple of years, we got our first daughter and later we got a second one. Hence, we felt sick several times during that year. It was very hard to live with a limited budget, since we had to spent a lot for doctor visits and medicines. Then, I heard about a medical camp near the factory where I work. I went there and took a health insurance of GK. Now we can visit a doctor and buy medicines at a lower cost. Together with my husband I participated in some awareness raising trainings on various health issues, personal hygiene and occupational health safety. I also try to teach my children about personal hygiene. Now, my family feels less sick thanks to the health services provided by GK. 

The second WSM partner in Bangladesh is Gonoshasthaya Kendra (GK), the largest health provider after the Bangladeshi government. They started out by focusing on the rural areas, but now they also include garment workers. As it became clear in the above testimony, through the services of GK more people have enrolled in social security schemes or systems of social insurance (like pensions, maternity benefits, unemployment benefits, etc.). People also have improved access to health, because they subscribed to a health insurance system or were reached by activities offering health services by partner organisations, such as health camps, awareness raising, health insurance, day observation, personal hygiene, etc. In 2019, over 100.000 members (54% women and 79% youth) have achieved better access to health services. GK also provided over 150 people with vocational skill training to be able to find a better job and to have an improved income security. For example: after completion of computer and embroidery training, 40 out of 60 women got new jobs.

The exchanges between GK and OKRA regarding elderly also continued, with OKRA Coordinator Mark DeSoete and three other staff from OKRA visiting Bangladesh. They also invited an actor who, based on his experiences in Bangladesh, created a play that will tour around the OKRA meeting points in Flanders during 2020 raising awareness about the issues of elderly and social protection.

Last, a lot of people benefited from the services provided by the WSM synergy program in Bangladesh. Nazma for example got training on social protection and labor law arranged by the synergy activity. As an activist and women leader, she was motived to learn about important labor laws and rights. On the 22nd of April 2019, all workers put forward a Charter of Demand to their factory management. Now workers get a weekly holiday, attendance bonus, maternity leave and casual leave with payment, medical facilities, etc. “Workers are finally enjoying their rights, which is a great achievement for me”, said Nazma.

As an impact of the activities of the WSM partners in the past three years, the WSM supported activities contributed that over 60.000 people found a new job or improved their existing job. Almost 300.000 people had better coverage, be it for social security or access to health. Three important legislation were also passed to benefit garment workers: the minimum wage was increased; Safe Working Condition were improved and freedom of Association for trade unions and collective bargaining were better guaranteed.

In 2019, over 600.000 people reached through:
For labour standards: over 160.000 garment workers (60% women and 70% youth) reached through:

• Over 150.000 garment workers are more aware of their rights through campaigns and public outreach. 
• Almost 3.000 garment workers are newly organized
• Almost 400 received basic or advanced training 
• Over 3.200 garment workers received legal assistance. 
• Over 1.200 workers were mobilised to demand to increase the minimum wage. 

155 people got vocational skill training through GK, and they raised awareness regarding women driving.
200.000 workers were made aware of their social security rights and 30 got a basic training.
Almost 200.000 people were involved to improve their access to health because of GK, with 15.000 people getting direct medical attention.

Partners: NGWF, GK, OHS Initiative, BSPAN               Budget 2019: 100.000€
Donor: Own WSM funds                                                   Programme: 2017-2021

7th Anniversary of Rana Plaza Tragedy- lighting 7 candles - NGWF

Seven candles were lit on the 7th anniversary since the Rana Plaza Tragedy by the National Garment Workers Federation (NGWF) in front of their offices in Dhaka, in remembrance of the dead and injured workers. Two orphaned children were also present, besides the president Mr Amirul Haque Amin and selected central leaders.
At the time of the candle lighting, certain demands were put forward by the Federation in relation with Rana Plaza, but also related to the present COVID-19 situation:

About Rana Plaza

1. Punishment of Rana Plaza owner and six garment owners of Rana Plaza;
2. Establish a monument in remembrance of deceased workers of Rana Plaza on the land;
3. Ensure follow-up and medical service for the injured workers of Rana Plaza;
4. Demand of rehabilitation for the injured and families of deceased workers;
5. Continuation of the Accord until the formation of proposed Ready Made Garment Sustainability Council and until the negotiations are done between Buyers and the Trade Unions.

About the present corona-virus

1. Black-list the garment industries are open still and take steps to punish them;
2. Cancel their license and take measures against those owners who did not pay the full salary for the month of March;
3. Those who cut the four-days salary for March must pay these to the respective workers;
4. No fraud can be done to the workers in the name of lay-off. Garment Industries should remain closed under the general leave declared by the Government with full payment;
5. Garment industries can not open until the situation improves and public transportation are available;
6. No delays regarding the April salary and Eid bonus;
7. Stop postponement and cancellation of order, and demanding discount by Buyers
8. With owners and Government, the Buyers must also come forward to take the responsibility for the workers;
9. Initiate rationing system for garment workers by the government.

Bangladesh - COVID-19: corona testing kits and food distribution

Gonoshasthaya Kendra (GK), the biggest health provider in Bangladesh after the government, is at the forefront by developing a corona-virus testing kit (see our previous post here), GR Covid-19 Dot Blot, which would allow detect infection in 15 minutes.
After the green light to import the needed material, GK plans to have a first batch finished by the 11th of April, so that it can be submitted to WHO and the Bangladesh Government. If they approve it, they can start mass production. As previously reported, they want to make this testing kit available for as many people as possible, at a very affordable price of 200BDT(2 EUR), to avoid a massive outbreak.

GK has also started food distribution, with over 2.000 families assisted last week. These packages include rice, lentils, cooking oil and other necessities, with which a family should survive for one month. GK hopes to be able to help 100.000 families in one month. Follow their Facebook Page for more details. GK also invites people to support them here.

 The National Garment Workers Federation (NGWF) distributed rice, lentils, potatoes, onions, soap, and other essentials to 213 garment workers. Also,  Bangladesh Occupational Safety, Health and Environment Foundation (OSHE) distributed masks, gloves, soap and awareness leaflets among the ready-made garment workers. They called upon the Bangladeshi government to declare COVID-19 an Occupational Disease under the labour law.

According to OSHE, at present over a million of workers and employees in health service, waste recycling, food and medicine supply chain, ready made garments, tea plantation, mass media, bank and financial services etc. in Bangladesh continuing to serve at workplaces due to urgent national and commercial needs with potential health hazard and inadequate health and safety protection. Many of them potentially get infected with corona virus at work and on the way to work or get back home during this pandemic period require necessary legal protection.

Repon Chowdhury, Executive Director of the OSHE Foundation said “This is very much a genuine and timely demand under the context of present reality in Bangladesh. COVID-19 needs to be declared as an occupational disease under the present national Labour law immediately through an official executive order by the government towards ensuring health and safety rights of the working population at workplaces passing time with the vulnerability and risk of Covid-19 infection”.

Urgent efforts are needed to ensure that vulnerable group of workers and employees with COVID-19 should have appropriate access to proper housing, with space for quarantine and social distancing while sleeping and eating, potable water and proper sanitation facilities on and off the job, free health care, safe transport, safe work practices and income protection.

ILO overview of COVID-19 measures implemented by governments, employers’ and workers’ organizations, and the ILO for Bangladesh: link

Bangladesh: NGWF demands six months maternity leave

In light of the International Women’s Day 2020 on 8th of March, National Garment Workers Federation (NGWF) has demanded 6 months maternity leave in private sectors, including for the garment workers. The rally was held on Friday 6th of March 2020, in Dhaka, Bangladesh. M Amirul Haque Amin, President of NGWF, said that the government already declared 6 months maternity leave for the public sector, but the country’s private sector, including the garment industry, still has only 4 months maternity leave. NGWF also demanded the government of Bangladesh to ratify ILO Convention 190 to stop all types of violence and harassment against women. More than two hundred women joined the procession in front of National Press Club, carrying banners and festoons with demands of 6 months maternity leave and ratification of ILO Convention 190. The rally started in front of National Press Club and went to the High Court, Palton Circle including some other street and ended at Topkhana road.

Garment Workers Rally Demand for ratification of ILC102 and 190

From the National Garment Workers Federation (NGWF) 
Bangladesh is transforming from LDC to middle income country and at the same time the rate of GDP and average life expectancy of people have increased tremendously. Currently the total GDP is 317.47 Billion USD, the average income is 1.909 USD and GDP increases by 7.2%. Much of this comes from the hard work of the garment workers. Unfortunately, the government of Bangladesh has yet to ratify the ILO Convention 102 regarding Social Security of Workers and workers, including in the garment sector, are deprived of social security system.
Next to the need for social protection, women workers are the victim of different violence, including sexual harassment in the workplace. The government of Bangladesh also still has to ratify the ILO Convention 190 regarding Violence and Harassment.
On Friday 8th November  2019, NGWF arranged a garment workers’ rally demanding the ratification of the ILO Convention 102 and 190 which started with a brief assembly in front of the national press club. The rally then headed to the High Court, and ended at the central office of the Federation.

Though OHS in Bangladesh improved, wages did not (NGWF)

 Ms. Sufia is 27 years old and works as a sewing Operator at Jamuna Apparels in Dhaka since 2014. Over the four years she worked with honesty and dedication. In July 2018, her Manager threatened and insulted her, and forced her to sign a blank sheet of paper. She was dismissed without respecting the legal procedure. Ms. Sufia was devastated and at a loss as to how to continue providing for her family. As she was a member of NGWF, she asked help to get her job back or at least compensation. NGWF sent a legal notice to the factory management which didn’t receive any reply. NGWF filed with Ms. Sufia a case at the Labour Court and end of September 2018, a settlement was reached which entitled Sufia to several benefits, including for her termination, amounting to a total amount of around 1.000€. She used this to buy a cow and her husband opened a tea shop, providing her family with alternative income.

Though the health and safety aspects have improved in Bangladesh, the general working conditions haven’t improved, on the contrary. After five years, the minimum wage for garment workers was increased from 45€ to 70€, way below the requested 150€ and largely insufficient because it doesn’t even cover inflation and lower than neighboring countries like China with 150€. Hence, the National Garment Workers Federation (NGWF) keeps organizing: membership went up with 21%, 74 new unions were registered at factory level in recent years and NGWF managed to obtain over 150.000€ for garment workers through arbitration. No meagre task as NGWF thus accounts for over 60% of the total compensations paid.

2018 Update on the Bangladesh OHS Initiative

In Bangladesh, WSM and its partners have supported in 2016 till 2018 the OHS Initiative. You can find their latest newsletter here. 
As an extract, here an email interview with Masud Parvez, previously the Training Manager and now the Project Coordinator of the Bangladesh OHS Initiative for Workers and Community.

What have the participants in the 2017 training course done with their new skills and information?
At the end of the 20-day training course, the first group of participants carried out several training programs for their own organizations, part of the general effort of the participating organizations to make occupational health and safety a part of their regular project activities. Our records show that 20
of the program graduates from the five organizations participating last year carried out a total of 106 training sessions, each lasting from two hours to all day long, for 2,400 participants. Each organization tends to focus on specific topics. For example, some focused on labor law and the role of safety committees, others on hygiene in the workplace, and still others on gender and domestic and workplace violence.
According to our follow-up training plan based on discussions with the member organizations, they will conduct another 108 trainings reaching 2,160 participants by November. These trainings will be
conducted by graduates of both groups, with the new graduates leading two sessions each.

We Need 160USD! Bangladeshi Garment Workers Hunger Strike to increase Minimum Wage

The National Garment Workers Federation (NGWF) is organizing a token Hunger Strike on 12 October, 2018 by garment workers in front of the National Press Club in Dhaka to demand: reconsideration & increase of the declared minimum wage, basic to be fixed at 70% and not 51%, immediate declaration of the wage for all other grades, annual increment to be fixed at 10% and to increase the wages of other grades proportionately. The President of the federation Mr. Amirul Haque Amin declared this program from the Press Conference held at the auditorium of Dhaka Reporters Unity on 4 October, 2018, in the presence of the other central leaders.

NGWF demands the Prime Minister of Bangladesh to determine the minimum wages of Garment workers

On 13th of September 2018, the minimum wage for Bangladeshi garment workers was fixed at 8.000BDT, which is largely insufficient for garment workers to live. The previous minimum wage, dating from 2013, was 5.300BDT and trade unions were demanding a substantial increase to 16.000BDT to compensate for inflation. On 26th of September 2018, after hundreds of garment workers gathered in a Bangladeshi Flag Rally in front of the national press club in Dhaka, this demand was submitted in a memorandum to the prime minister.

Speakers highlighted the following points:

• The announced 8.000BDT is for 7th grade workers, which are basically helpers, representing only 3% to 5% of the total garment workers. No minimum wage was announced for other types of workers, including the main driving force operators.
• Of the announced 8.000BDT (gross wage), only 4.100BDT is considered as basic wage, or only 51% of the gross wage. This means all aspects which refer to the basic wage, like overtime, festival bonus, service and retirement benefits, will be very low as well. For instance, if a worker gets 20BDT per hour for general duty, with this low basic wage, in doing overtime, she or he will get only receive 20,40BDT.
• No mention is made to a yearly wages increase rate, while trade unions recommend an annual inflation by 10% rather than the previous 5 %.

 The following 4 demands are included in the memorandum:

1. The announced wages have to be reconsidered and increased.
2. Wages of all categories of workers have to be defined, including operators.
3. The basic wage must constitute 70%, not 51% as currently is the case.
4. Yearly wages increase must be 10%.

NGWF managed to get jobs reinstated of illegally fired union leaders from Top Jeans

What was the problem?
According to the National Garment Workers Federation (NGWF), WSM's partner in Bangladesh, the management of Dhaka based Top Jeans violated the Labour Act and harassed executive union leaders and active members of the union several times. On 20th of August 2018, the management fired the President of the union. Management did not list the wages of 30 workers, including the union leaders. When they came to know the reason, management allegedly abused the workers, with around 40 thugs who entered the factory and forced them to leave their jobs, as well as ordering them to leave the area. These thugs stabbed one of the workers, who is currently under treatment at Bangladesh Medical of emergency unit. As a result, 30 workers, of which 9 are trade union leaders, cannot enter the factory.


The trade unions demanded

• justice administered to the management and the thugs;
• to cover all medical treatments of the injured workers;
• to reinstate the fired 30 workers with due wage;
• to remove any obstacle to continue union activities;
• to stop harassment of the workers by management and thugs.

Labour protest and compromise reached:
On 30 August, the workers demonstrated and led a procession after the lock out of the factory, gathering solidarity from 80% of the workers. Due to this movement, the traffic in the Uttara area of Dhaka city was halted. Later, an agreement by initiative and mediation by BGMEA and the Federation's was reached with the government representatives, the BGMEA, the factory authorities, the union and the federation. The management was obliged to reinstate the jobs of twenty of the fired workers, including eight of the union leaders.  Work was resumed and factory production is again fully operating.

Commemorating Rana Plaza 5 years after in Dhaka

It feels strange to be in Dhaka on the 24th of April. This day is Bangladeshi’s 9/11, a day of commemoration where all newspapers headlines refer to the Rana Plaza tragedy that happened five years ago and which claimed the lives of 1138 garment workers and left more than 2.400 injured. The front page headlines aggressively remind us that "promises made mostly not implemented". There are over twenty five events commemorating the human made catastrophe, like rallies, human chains and others, some gathering survivors and family members. The events are filled with frustration and anger and demands. 

Invited by WSM's partner, the garment trade union NGWF, I went to a lighting of candles by children orphaned by Rana Plaza. It was a sad affair, with around twenty kids, most under ten years old, who were babies or toddlers when Rana Plaza collapsed, stealing their mother or father away.

A woman still cries recounting what happened, others blink tears away. They share their stories in front of cameras and mikes, highlighting their misery and sadness. And there is a lot of suffering to be shown, there are a lot of cameras and mikes to record. Bangladesh is in no way over what happened, though it sometimes seems the rest of the world has mostly forgotten and needs to be reminded of one of the worst industrial tragedy. It alerted people buying a T-shirt in the West to the world of sweat and exploitation that had gone into bringing a cheap T-shirt to their closets.

How to compensate

People here, gathered by trade unions and civil society are still demanding for better compensation for the victims, because the compensation paid to 5.000 workers had to use as reference their age and salary. While the formula is sound, with a legal minimum wage of currently 53€, this doesn’t amount to much. If a worker dies in a work related accident, family still gets a measly 1.000€, which even after Rana Plaza hasn’t been increased. NGWF demands that the amount would be calculated according to ILO Convention 121, adding compensation for pain and suffering.

What improved and what hasn't

What has improved are the security standards, with inspections and renovations done in almost 4.000 of the 5.000 factories in Bangladesh. This is done by multi-stakeholder initiatives gathering brands, factory owners, civil society and presided over by the ILO. This is an important achievement which was recently reconfirmed, with the Bangladeshi Accord on Fire and Safety renewed, despite resistance from government and employers. Still, it is a slow process and daunting task to improve safety. Since Rana Plaza, almost 100 factory accidents have happened, injuring 450 people and killing 80. But what hasn’t improved are the working conditions and wages. Trade unions like WSMs partner NGWF are an increase from the current legal minimum wage of 53€ to a living wage of at least 160€ per month. Organizing garment workers remains problematic, with half of trade unions which are applying for registration rejected and hampering the freedom of association.

Unlike 9/11, the Bangladeshi government doesn’t like that attention still goes to this tragedy, to the lack of adequate compensation and the ongoing problems in the garment sector. There is no monument at the site of the collapse, demands that the 24th of April would become a national holiday to observe workers safety day were not followed. Authorities are reluctant that events during the commemoration are organized at the site, not even a medical camp WSM’s partner GK wanted to organize for the injured. They are wary of journalists, often imposing they agree to be accompanied. The government is worried negative press will deter brands from ordering from Bangladesh, while the garment sector is very important for the economy.

Beacons of hope

At the event I attended, the orphans on the front row looked a bit bewildered at the eye of the camera. Most had no idea of what was happening, and why they had to be put on display. Rana Plaza caused extreme suffering and many want to remind the world of it, rub our noses in it, not make us forget. The children lit candles, which are supposed to symbolise hope. Many of the candles were blown out by the wind and had to be relight.

Rana Plaza site on the 24th of April in the afternoon,
with only few people and the flowers of the morning ceremony at the monument.

 At the Rana Plaza site, people and organisations queued for hours in the morning to deposit flowers at the small monument with a hammer and sickle, made by some communist organisation, since the government hasn't put anything there.


Where the ruins used to be is now a field, where relatives wander, the only way to visit the grave of their loved ones, as several bodies were never recovered. By the afternoon, most have left, the site feels lost again. Just some people mingle about, watching the occasional journalist come to take footage. The only sign of the government is three police trucks full of watchful men. No declarations were made by the government, not even an attempt at defending their actions or show some progress was made.

A woman I recognize from a physiotherapy session at GK comes to sit at the monument,
still wearing orthopedic braces on her back and arm.
She is obviously trying to send a message, but I am not sure many are there to listen.

Workers Voices: Documentary on Bangladeshi Garment workers speaking up and organizing

Sramik Awaaz: Worker Voices is the first film to fully explore the lives, work, and organizing efforts of Bangladesh’s garment workers. Through interviews carried out in 2014 and 2015, and filming through 2016, the film chronicles the barriers faced by the mostly female workers at home, at work, and in life. These interviews reflect some clear policy prescriptives for improving the rights of workers not only in Bangladesh, but the issues raised echoes in workforces around the world even among low wage workers in US and Europe. The film was crowdfunded and produced by Chaumtoli Huq and directed by Mohammed Romel.


See the full movie (in Bangladeshi) here.

Garment workers emergency solidarity fund for Rohingya

Leaders of five Bangladeshi garment workers federations call to the international community, including Europe, USA & Canada, to cancel trade concession to Myanmar for unleashing genocide against Rohingya. They have praised the government for taking courageous decision to provide shelter to Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.

The trade union leaders made the call on October 4, 2017 from in front of the National Press Club in Dhaka city at a launching ceremony of the ‘Garment workers’ emergency solidarity fund for Rohingya’. The five garment workers federations which jointly organized the fund to help Rohingya refugees are the Garment Workers Employees Federation, National Garment Workers Employees Federation, Ekota Garment Workers Federation, Bangla Garment Workers Federation & National Garment Workers Federation (NGWF).

Please find the Press Release here.

Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh extended

The global union federations IndustriALL and UNI announced here that the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh will be extended with a new agreement. To date, 13 brands and retailers have signed and 8 more committed to sign the new agreement, with many more likely to follow in the weeks ahead.

The Rana Plaza collapse in April 2013 claimed the lives of more than 1,100 workers, injuring 2,500 more. Six weeks later, unions, non-governmental organizations and brands announced the Úrst Bangladesh Accord. Currently, the Accord covers more than 2.5 million workers. The Accord is a groundbreaking building safety agreement based on binding commitments by apparel brands to ensure that hazards in their factories are identified and corrected. The Accord has overseen factory renovations – from installation of fire doors to strengthening of dangerously weak structural columns – that have improved safety for millions of garment workers. The current Accord expires in May 2018.

NGWF: 4th Anniversary of Rana Plaza: ‘Zero Tolerance’ regarding workers safety

Leaders of National Garment Workers Federation have vowed saying, “We will not let occur anymore tragic accident like Rana Plaza in Bangladesh. We will follow ‘Zero Tolerance’ policy regarding Garment workers safety. There will be no compromise in this matter.”National Garment Workers Federation (NGWF) leaders said this at ‘A lighting of 50 beacons of life by 50 orphans’ program organized to mark the 4th anniversary of Rana Plaza tragedy in front of the National Press Club in Dhaka city.

The 50 orphans have lighted equal number of lamps; they lost their parents in Rana Plaza accident that took place on April 24, 2013. They lightened the lamps at 9:15am on the occasion. The 8-story Rana Plaza located at Savar, about 30 kilometers away from the capital Dhaka, at about 9:00am on the fateful day when more than 5000 workers were working in 5 Garment factories inside the building. About 1138 workers, mostly women, lost their lives in the accident, which injured over 2500 workers. This tragedy is treated globally as the biggest industrial accident in the world in 100 years.

President of NGWF Amirul Haque Amin presided over the program. At the beginning of the program, the participants paid rich tribute & respect to the martyrs & victim and mourn their tragedy. They prayed for the departed souls and injured workers of Rana Plaza. President of the ceremony paid gratitude to the Garment workers of Bangladesh, Garment Trade Unions, International Trade Unions and Workers’ rights organizations for extending support for realizing compensation for the dead & injured victims of the tragedy and their family.

The program was addressed by, among others, NGWF General Secretary Mrs Arifa Akhtar & Central committee leaders Md. Faruq Khan, Mrs Aleya Begum, Kabir Hossain, Rafiqul Islam Rafique, Foridul Islam, Humayun Kabir, Mrs Sweety Sultana, H Robiul Chowdhury, Miss Esrat Jahan Ela, Bacchu Mia, Mrs Parvin Akhter, Md. Kasem.

While  delivering  presidential  speech  NGWF  President  Amirul  Haque  Amin appealed to the Government, Trade union bodies, BGMEA-BKMEA, Brands (ACCORD & Alliance) to undertake joint initiatives to prevent a repetition of tragedies like Rana Plaza and Tazreen Tragedies and to compensate the victim workers as per ‘Loss of earnings’(& 500.000Taka for ‘Pain & sufferings as per ILO Convention 121), as well as providing and short and long term medical support.

Amin also urged all concerned to provide long-term advanced and free Medicare support to the injured workers of both Rana Plaza and Tazreen.

NGWF: Ananta workers’ movement prevents repetition of Rana Plaza tragedy in Dhaka

The workers of Ananta Fashion & Ananta Apparels Ltd, two garment factories housed at same building in Dhaka metropolitan city, resisted repetition of another Rana Plaza tragedy through united movement following partial collapse of the building recently under the leadership of the NGWF along with their factory union.

Security guardrooms at the ground floor of 15-the storied Ananta Plaza, which houses both factories, collapsed on April 5, 2017 at about 5pm, when about 3.000 workers, mostly women, were still producing RMG products inside the building, giving in to big earth-hole created due to pressure of a massive excavation of immediately adjacent land.