Femnet e.V.

NEWS - 2024

15 February 2024 The future of Bangladesh: What will become of the people who sew our clothes?

The year 2023 has cruelly revealed the severe repression suffered by workers and trade unionists in Bangladesh. Four people were killed in protests in favour of a new minimum wage, activists were threatened and civil society was increasingly restricted. Statements from Western fashion brands have largely failed to materialise. What do these developments mean for the lives of women in the garment industry and what is the future of what is arguably Bangladesh's most important industry?

In 2023, a minimum wage committee for the garment sector was convened in Bangladesh for the first time in five years. Not only the formation of the committee, but the entire process was lengthy and non-transparent. For example, the workers' representation was not provided by the country's largest trade union - the National Garment Workers Federation - as required by law, but was instead filled by a trade union representative with close ties to business and the government. Negotiations and decisions were postponed, with the result that almost a year passed before the new minimum wages were agreed. The demands of the trade unions, which were based on a comprehensive study by the Bangladesh Institute for Labour Studies (BILS)^[1] which, based on a comprehensive study by the Bangladesh Institute for Labour Studies (BILS), mostly amounted to a minimum of 23,000 taka (approx. €195), were not sufficiently taken into account.

The new minimum wage is not enough to live on

The former minimum wage of 8,000 taka was already not enough for a decent life when it was introduced, and in the years that followed, the coronavirus crisis and rising inflation rates meant that workers and their families had to skip meals to make ends meet. When the employers' representative then announced his recommendation of 10,400 taka in October 2023, it rightly caused great frustration among the people who sew clothes for Western fashion brands. The sobering proposal thus intensified the wage protests that had already begun and ultimately led to numerous riots. In November, the new minimum wage was then set at 12,500 taka by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Dozens of workers and trade unionists are still in custody

Workers exercising their right to freedom of assembly and protest were attacked with rubber bullets, tear gas and water cannons. According to the Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC), over 40,000 protesting workers were unlawfully charged, 131 were detained and four people were killed during the protests. In addition, factories started blacklisting workers who were clearly campaigning for higher wages. At the same time, trade unionists were - and still are - persecuted and threatened. Many of the detainees were released on bail after the parliamentary elections on 7 January, but around 40 people are still in prison. FEMNET and the CCC are therefore calling on the Western brands to ensure that all false accusations against the workers are dropped.

Severe repression makes the work of trade unions more difficult

The increasingly repressive environment has not only manifested itself in the violence against protesters and the increasing surveillance of trade unions. Even before the protests over the minimum wage negotiations, trade unionist Shahidul Islam (BGIWF) was killed after he supported workers in a wage dispute during talks with the factory management of Prince Jacquard Sweaters Ltd. In December, the civil society alliance CIVICUS declared the civil society space in Bangladesh "closed" after the ruling party, led by Sheikh Hasina, deliberately intimidated, arrested and tortured opposition human rights defenders, journalists, protesters and other critics in the run-up to the January 2024 elections. With its "closed" status, Bangladesh is now one of the 28 most repressive countries in the world.

Many brands in the textile alliance remained silent

The CCC wrote several letters to brands such as C&A, H&M, Primark, Zalando, Esprit and Aldi, urging them to support the unions' demands. Civil society in the Partnership for Sustainable Textiles (PST) also addressed a letter to the brands in the, calling on them to support a complaint to the wage committee and to criticise the low increase to 12,500 taka. Unfortunately, only a few companies (including Hugo Boss, Vaude and Kik) responded to the appeal, although many of the brands in the PST have long claimed to be in favour of living wages. Fashion brands must finally raise their voices and condemn the violence against workers and the suppression of trade unions. They must also adjust their purchase prices so that at least 23,000 taka (approx. €195) can be paid per month. The promise of living wages remains an empty promise as long as brands continue to put pressure on suppliers through price and ignore the impact of their purchasing practices on the lives of garment workers.

What does the new minimum wage mean for workers?

The Bangladesh Garment Exporters Association (BGMEA) presents the new minimum wage of 12,500 taka as a 56% wage increase, but research by the Worker Rights Consortium (WRC) shows that the real increase is only 14% when inflation since 2018 is taken into account. Garment workers must therefore continue to work for poverty wages with no prospect of a wage revision in the near future. For seamstresses like Kadiza, this means that they do not earn enough money to live a dignified life while working at least 48 hours a week. This is despite the fact that the work is physically very strenuous and demands a lot from the workers. Kadiza says: "I'm under a lot of pressure to perform at work. I have to produce 120 parts an hour." Mazuma also complains: "My son is already 4 years old, but he doesn't speak. I would like to have him examined to find out how I can support him - but I have no financial means."

The new wage of 12,500 taka will not improve the situation of the workers. In January, we heard that rents were raised in some neighbourhoods, so for some the increase will evaporate immediately after its introduction. In addition, around 30-40% of factories appear not to have introduced the new wage in January. The new wage system consists of five levels instead of the previous seven. This standardisation was demanded by trade unions, but apparently still leads to disagreements about which category the workers fall into.

Bangladeshi government with an iron fist against the workers

In their protest for a wage that is enough to live on, the workers have received little empathy from politicians. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina spoke disparagingly of the protesters shortly after the new minimum wage was set. According to Hasina, the workers should be aware that their protests put their jobs at risk and that they would have to "go back to their villages" if they were sacked. The factory owners were also unsympathetic. Faruque Hassan, President of the employers' association BGMEA, made it clear in a public statement that he has no understanding of the reality of the workers' lives and is either unaware of the legal regulations on working hours or is happy to ignore them. In the statement, Hassan argues, for example, that workers who work two to four hours of overtime a day take home significantly more than the minimum wage. Apart from the fact that justifying a daily working time of twelve hours is absolutely unacceptable, excessive overtime is also prohibited by law: Article 102 of the Labour Code sets the regular working week at a maximum of 48 hours. Including overtime, the upper limit is 60 hours per week, but the average must not exceed 56 hours. The law allows extensions in exceptional situations, but only for a maximum of six months. The regular wage alone must therefore enable a life in dignity - if it does not and workers are permanently dependent on overtime, it is a form of forced labour.

What happens now?

The future of Bangladesh is also a major issue for the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The BMZ's Asia strategy is defined as "innovative, social and feminist" and the situation of women in the garment industry is addressed. Gender equality is seen as a cross-cutting issue in development policy and topics such as gender-based violence in the workplace are included. However, the strategy does not include strategies for solving the growing repression of trade unions, the shrinking room for manoeuvre for civil society and the associated massive restriction of human rights and freedoms. The focus is placed on "green" issues such as circularity and environmental protection. The prioritisation of these issues is understandable, but the social component of sustainability and thus the safeguarding of workers' everyday lives is also of central importance.

Systems with impact

Alongside the negative developments that have emerged in 2023, there are also rays of hope that prove that efforts to improve working conditions continue to be worthwhile and have a positive impact on workers' lives. In November 2023, the International Convention on Safety and Health in the Textile and Clothing Industry, the Accord, was renegotiated and signed. The Bangladesh Country Programme has already been signed by 128 brands that have made a permanent commitment to improving health and safety in their supply chains. This includes factory inspections and remediation measures, awareness-raising programmes for workers, respect for freedom of association and an independent grievance mechanism. Another project in the area of occupational safety and health (OSH) is the Employment Injury Scheme (EIS), a project to introduce accident insurance. The pilot project is supported by brands such as C&A, H&M, Primark, Tchibo, KiK and Puma and is intended to pave the way for sustainable accident insurance backed by the government.

The past year has shown us the repressive environment in which our partners in Bangladesh have to operate. This makes FEMNET's cooperation with the local trade unions more difficult, but it also shows how relentlessly the workers and activists are continuing their fight for better working conditions and higher wages. This gives hope that the situation will improve soon, which largely depends on the willingness of local brands to actively support the people in their supply chains in their demands and to adapt their purchasing practices and pricing policies. That is why we are campaigning for strong legislation at both national and EU level. Our experience has shown: Only binding regulations can bring about rapid change and actively protect people and the environment from exploitation.

 

 

^[1] The study "MIND THE GAP - A Study on Garment Workers in Bangladesh" was written by BILS as part of the joint MAP project "Strengthening Civil Society in the Partnership for Sustainable Textiles in the Production Countries of the Global Textile Industry and in Germany" and supported by the organisations SÜDWIND Institute, INKOTA-netzwerk, HEJSupport and FEMNET.