Stitched Up
Stitched Up
Stitched Up
in the Bangladeshi
garment sector
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Preface
01
been at the heart of the countrys men represent just 15% of the workforce
export boom ever since the first factory in the garment industry, they perform the
opened in 1976.The industry has grown better paid jobs such as general managers,
dramatically over the past 35 years, and production managers, line managers and
today accounts for 80% of Bangladeshs supervisors. This illustrates the gendered
division of labour within the industry, with
total exports.There are now 4,825
women only able to access lower paid jobs.
garment factories in Bangladesh
employing over three million people. The Constitution of Bangladesh guarantees
Fully 85% of these workers are women. equal rights to women and men, and national
laws are in place to safeguard womens
The expansion of the garment industry in rights. One example is the 2006 Bangladesh
Bangladesh was fuelled by the structural Labour Law, which protects the fundamental
economic reforms of the 1980s, which rights of women workers, including the
opened up the Bangladeshi economy to right to maternity leave.2 At the international
foreign investment, deregulation of markets level, Bangladesh has ratified the UN
and privatisation. The Bangladeshi government Convention on the Elimination of All
established tax holidays and the development Forms of Discrimination Against Women
of export enclaves enabling businessmen to (CEDAW), as well as ILO Convention
build or rent bonded warehouses in Dhaka 111 on Discrimination in Employment
and Chittagong cities. This process was and Occupation.
accompanied by a massive increase of capital
inflows into the country. Foreign direct The reality is that, despite such legislation,
investment leapt from a mere $2.4 million women workers rights are ignored.
in 1986 to more than $1,000 million in 2008.1 Women workers perform poorly paid jobs,
Today, one third of foreign direct investment face severe labour rights violations and do
comes from European companies, principally not enjoy their legal entitlements. Statutory
from the UK. maternity rights are rarely provided,
overtime is compulsory and excessively long
Young women are the driving force of the working days add to the burden of domestic
Bangladeshi garment sector. Of the 988 responsibilities, denying women any rest
women workers interviewed for this report, periods or time with their children.
86% were between 18 and 32 years old. It
is these young women who provide the The growth of Bangladeshs garment
hard labour needed to meet the unrealistic industry has been characterised by low
production targets set by Bangladeshi garment wages, poor enforcement of labour
factories. Employers claim that older workers legislation and the availability of a large
perform more poorly and make more pool of unskilled women workers. While
mistakes, and that this is why they favour some have viewed the feminisation of the
younger women workers. garment sector as a positive step towards
womens emancipation, this has only
As many as 83% of the women workers happened in a highly exploitative context.
interviewed for this report are employed as This report seeks to expose the continuing
sewing operators, and nearly 10% as helpers. violation of women workers rights in
These are the lowest paid jobs in the industry. the Bangladeshi garment industry, and to
Women in both positions undertake manual highlight the struggle of the many thousands
work and their level of education is low: of of women who have defied oppression
the 988 interviewees, just 22% had obtained to fight for their rights.
NGWF rally in Dhaka protesting against factory fires, May Day 2010
03
Photo: NGWF
NATIONAL GARMENT WORKERS FEDERATION
The National Garment Workers their rights, but with long working
Federation (NGWF) was established days and domestic responsibilities
in 1984 as an independent, democratic they are often left with little time
and progressive trade union federation. to participate in trade union
With a central office in Dhaka and activity. Labour rights training
regional branches across the country, is key to challenging sweatshop
it has campaigned since its inception exploitation, and the NGWF has
for the protection and enforcement of prioritised this training for women
women workers rights.The NGWF workers over many years.The NGWF
has successfully organised over 1,000 has also made a priority of promoting
factory committees in different women leaders in its governance
garment factories, and has doubled structures.Today, 17 of the 30
its membership in just seven years. It members of the NGWF central
played a leading role in the most recent executive committee are women.
campaign to increase the minimum Within the 37 factory-based unions
wage for Bangladeshi garment workers, that make up the NGWF, six female
which resulted in an 80% wage rise for workers and four male workers are
the lowest paid workers in 2010. executive members, while at the
branch and committee levels there
Women workers themselves are are eight female and five male
on the front line of the struggle for executive members.
Overworked and underpaid
04
by women workers and other trade are supposed to work an eight-hour shift.
unionists in Bangladesh, the minimum However, garment workers are forced to
wage for garment workers was put in extra hours on a daily basis in order
raised in 2010 for the first time in to meet unrealistic production targets set
four years. Receipt of wages in the by factory owners. The wages of 96% of the
garment industry depends on meeting garment workers interviewed for this report
an assigned production target. If are dependent on meeting production targets.
production targets are met, a sewing Yet extra hours worked to meet production
operators salary now starts at 3,861 targets are not considered overtime, and are
taka (approximately 32) a month and therefore unpaid.
a helpers wage at 3,000 taka (25)
a month. Employers claim production targets are
achievable in an eight-hour shift, but 64%
Even with the new increases, however, of the women workers interviewed stated
these wages fall far short of the level which that targets are unrealistic within the legal
is considered to be a living wage that is, working time, while 75% of workers
enough to allow a worker to provide her interviewed themselves fail to meet their
family with basic human necessities such as targets within the time allotted. One in
food, shelter, clothing, water, health, education three of those interviewed reported working
and transport.3 Trade unionists in Bangladesh an extra 11-20 hours per month in order
calculate the living wage for a single worker to meet targets and thereby guarantee
to be at least 5,000 taka (42) a month. their basic salary, while 23% work 21-30
According to the women workers hours extra.
interviewed for this research, the average
monthly household expenditure for a family In addition to this unpaid overtime, the
of four is higher still, and far in excess majority of women need to work further
of the new minimum wage levels introduced paid overtime in order to meet basic needs
in 2010: such as housing or rising food costs. Of the
women workers interviewed for this report,
32% work a massive 100-140 hours of
Average monthly household expenditure
overtime every month, while 30% work 60-
(in taka):
100 hours and 14% less than 40 hours. Fully
House rent ............. 1,825 80% of women workers leave their factory
between 8pm and 10pm each evening after
Food ........................ 3,973 starting work at 8am, infringing Bangladeshi
Transport ............... 300 labour law, which states that under no
circumstances should daily working hours
Education ............... 950 exceed 10 hours. Given that the majority of
workers have a one hour return journey in
Medical ................... 715 the evening, most women arrive home late
Clothing ................. 675 at night at which point they have to begin
their daily domestic chores.
Refreshment .......... 458
Total ........................ 8,896 To compound this injury, factory owners
cut overtime pay whenever they can. Reasons
05
As noted above, almost all garment had to work night shifts on 1-3 days; 21% on
Stitched Up Women workers in the Bangladeshi garment sector
workers wages are based on meeting 4-5 days, 12% on 6-10 days, and 18% for more
production targets.These targets are than 10 days. Of these, only one in 10 had
in turn used as a powerful tool by agreed to the night shift. In 82% of cases,
managers to keep workers in factories workers were requested to work a night shift
beyond their legal working hours. on the evening of the same day, giving them
Workers claim that rapid changes in little notice to organise child care or make
high street fashion trends and the tight other personal arrangements.
production deadlines imposed by
Western retailers make production While night shifts are legal under Bangladeshi
targets unrealistic, as workers are labour law, research shows that in reality
forced to learn new and complex night shifts are simply considered to be
designs in a very short space of time. another form of overtime, with night shifts
By setting unrealistically high targets, being worked by those who have already
factory management force workers worked a day shift. Of the 988 women
to put in hours of unpaid overtime. workers interviewed for this report, 364
Moreover, 90% of women workers were threatened with losing their jobs if they
reported that they were only notified refused to work a night shift, and 436 faced
about overtime a few hours before it some form of punishment after refusing to
was needed, and 82% stated that they work a night shift.
could not refuse overtime for fear
of losing their jobs. Of those agreeing to undertake night shifts,
60% stayed in the factory after the shift was
Workers are put under particular pressure finished in order to avoid the dangers of
when the date for shipment of an order is travelling home after 3am. As many as 70%
close. To meet demanding shipment deadlines, reported not receiving any food or drink
workers are persuaded by management to during the night shift. Night shifts frequently
work until midnight without a break. At least follow a long working day, making
75% of women workers interviewed for this occupational accidents more likely due to
report had carried out night shifts recently, exhaustion. One in four of those interviewed
and in the past month 48% of workers had had had an accident during a night shift.
HARASSMENT AT WORK
Women workers face many forms of mistreatment in the workplace. Of the
total 988 workers interviewed for this report, 718 reported being spoken to
with obscene language, while 443 had been beaten and 427 hit in the face.
Most alarming were reports of sexual harassment in the workplace, with 297
women reporting sexual advances and 290 being touched inappropriately. In
addition to other forms of punishment such as being made to stand on tables,
workers reported being subjected to threats. Of those interviewed, 484
reported being threatened with losing their jobs, 333 reported threats
of being sent to prison and 328 reported threats of being forced to undress.
Shack dwellings for garment workers in Dhaka
07
Photo: Julio Etchart
Three in four of the women workers 474 had been denied any provision when
Stitched Up Women workers in the Bangladeshi garment sector
interviewed for this report are married, pregnant. In addition, two thirds of the
although the majority choose to women interviewed were unaware of the full
conceal their marital status in their legal entitlement to maternity leave. Only
workplace due to employers 24% answered correctly that they were
preference for single workers without entitled to over 100 days maternity leave.
family responsibilities.The 2006
Bangladesh Labour Law guarantees all Even those workers who are aware of their
women workers a total of 16 weeks' rights struggle to understand the complex
paid maternity leave: eight weeks calculations necessary to determine what
prior to the birth of the child and eight they are entitled to, and many of the factories
weeks after delivery. In January 2011, that do pay maternity benefits pay less than
the Prime Minister of Bangladesh the statutory entitlement. Many workers also
announced that maternity leave would have to look for new jobs after giving birth or
be extended to six months, but it return to the same factory at a lower grade,
remains unclear whether this will be as they are not aware of their legal rights to
implemented outside the civil service. return to the same grade they held before
their maternity leave.
09
Photo: Tarif Rahman
Women garment workers are the driving force behind Bangladeshs export
earnings. Yet they continue to live in extreme poverty as a result of paltry
wages and poor prospects for promotion to better jobs.
Many British companies source their clothes their supply chains. Such a commission
from Bangladesh because the country boasts would have the powers to investigate
lower labour costs than anywhere else in the complaints from workers whose rights have
world. High street retailers such as Primark, been violated in supply chains serving British
Tesco and Asda have long benefited from retailers.5 It would also fulfil the call from the
these cheap prices, in the full knowledge that UN special representative on business and
workers in the Bangladeshi garment industry human rights, John Ruggie, for non-judicial
are regularly denied their basic rights. The grievance mechanisms to be established
huge profits made by these retailers depend at the national level to complement judicial
on the exploitation of the women who make avenues for redress.6
their clothes.4
Please write to Rt Hon Kenneth Clarke
When they have been exposed as sourcing QC, Secretary of State for Justice, 102 Petty
their clothes from sweatshop labour, many France, London SW1H 9AJ, calling for the
companies have pointed to their own introduction of a Commission on Business,
corporate social responsibility initiatives Human Rights and the Environment to
in order to suggest that they are tackling protect the rights of workers in the supply
the problem head on.Yet these programmes chains of British retailers.
have failed to improve the situation for
women workers in the garment factories of 2. Call on your MP to press for an end to
Bangladesh. It is only through the struggle of the exploitation of workers in supply chains
the workers themselves and through popular overseas. Please write to your local MP
campaigning in solidarity with them that there asking them:
is any hope of real change. (a) to support the introduction of a
specialised Commission on Business,
War on Want has popularised the issues Human Rights and the Environment
raised in this report through its Love Fashion (b) to join the All-Party Parliamentary Group
Hate Sweatshops campaign. Thousands on International Corporate Responsibility:
of people have already signed up to the Business, Human Rights and the
campaigns call for action to protect the Environment
rights of women workers in the supply If you do not know the name of your MP,
chains of British high street retailers. We you can find it at www.theyworkforyou.com
ask all readers of this report to take the
following actions and join the campaign: 3. Join War on Want and bring justice for
workers across the world. It is only as a
1. Call on the UK government to stop result of dedicated support from members
companies profiting from sweatshop of the public and trade unionists in the UK
labour. War on Want is calling for the that War on Want can continue its campaign
UK government to establish a specialised for workers rights around the world. Please
Commission on Business, Human Rights join us by becoming a member of War on
and the Environment in order to hold British Want today go to www.waronwant.org/
companies to account for exploitation in joinus or phone us on 020 7324 5046.
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How this research was conducted
This report presents the findings of 988 interviews conducted with
women workers from 41 Bangladeshi garment factories. The interviews
were conducted between March and August 2010 by War on Want partners
the National Garment Workers Federation and the Alternative Movement
for Resources and Freedom Society.
All names of the women workers mentioned in this report have been
changed in order to protect their identities.
Notes
1
FDI in Least Developed Countries at a Glance: 2005/2006, United Nations,
New York and Geneva, 2006; World Investment Report 2010: Investing in a low-carbon
economy, United Nations, New York and Geneva, 2010. Foreign direct investment
into Bangladesh subsequently fell back in 2009 and early 2010 as a result of the
economic crisis.
2
For more on the 2006 Labour Law, see Ignoring the Law: Labour rights violations
in the garment industry in Bangladesh, War on Want, London, July 2009
3
For more on the living wage, see RO Tambunan, A Living Wage for Asian Garment
Workers, International Union Rights (2011) vol 18, no 1, pp20-21; also Stitching
a Decent Wage Across Borders: The Asia Floor Wage Proposal, Asia Floor Wage Alliance,
New Delhi, 2009
4
See Fashion Victims: The true cost of cheap clothes at Primark, Asda and Tesco,
War on Want, London, December 2006; and Fashion Victims II: How UK clothing
retailers are keeping workers in poverty, War on Want, London, December 2008
5
See The Reality of Rights: Barriers to accessing remedies when business operates
beyond borders, Corporate Responsibility (CORE) Coalition and London School
of Economics, London, April 2009
6
Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights: Implementing the United Nations
Protect, Respect and Remedy Framework, Final report of the Special Representative
of the Secretary-General on the issue of human rights and transnational
corporations and other business enterprises, John Ruggie, UN document
A/HRC/17/31, 21 March 2011
Published: July 2011 War on Want
War on Want fights poverty in developing countries
Written by Khorshed Alam of the in partnership and solidarity with people affected by
Alternative Movement for Resources globalisation. We campaign for human rights, especially
and Freedom Society, and by Laia Blanch workers rights, and against the root causes of global
and Anna Smith of War on Want. poverty, inequality and injustice.