Tag Archives: Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association

Bangladesh’s export earnings rose by 6.86% to $14.56 billion in the first five months of the current fiscal year, with the RMG sector being the largest contributor to this growth.

Under pressure from the international community and rights groups, the government has finally agreed to ease the requirements for forming trade unions at factories in the next amendment of the labour law. At present, signatures of at least 30 percent of the workers in the factory are needed to form a trade union -- an uphill task for union leaders. Furthermore, many workers do not want to participate in the election process of trade unions out of fear of getting sacked.

The Remediation Coordination Cell (RCC), formed to monitor workplace safety in the garment sector, should be independent and credible so that it can take sound decisions to avert further industrial accidents. “If there is a good system in place and if the retailers and brands continue sourcing from Bangladesh, it is expected that there will not be any disaster in the garment sector,” said Jim Moriarty, executive director of the Alliance, the factory inspection platform of 28 North American retailers.

Fraudulence involving buying houses has continued to surface with some British and local ones being accused of cheating five Bangladeshi garment factories of $3 million. The accused closed their Dhaka offices and have been absconding for the past one year, one of the victims told The Daily Star yesterday.

A move has been initiated to review wages of readymade garment workers against the backdrop of workers’ movement for pay hike and demands from national and international labour rights groups. Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association has requested the government to form a minimum wage board in this regard as the apparel factory owners have expressed their willingness to raise the workers’ wages.