RMG workers face fear, repression in Bangladesh: Amnesty International

Garment workers in Bangladesh continue to face a climate of fear and repression as corporate impunity for human rights abuses in business operations remains unchecked, said Amnesty International on International Workers' Day today (1 May). 

In its latest report on Bangladesh, the international rights organisation stated that garment workers are paid poverty wages and face innumerable obstacles including harassment, intimidation and violence, as well as legal hurdles when attempting to voice their demands for justice, wages, adequate safeguards and working conditions.

It also noted that last month marked the 11th anniversary of the collapse of Rana Plaza, which left more than 1,100 garment workers dead and thousands injured. 

The collapse was preceded by a deadly fire in Tazreen Fashions Factory five months earlier resulting in the death of at least 112 workers trapped by blocked fire exits and padlocked factory premises, it said. 

Mentioning that both disasters in Dhaka region, caused by wholly negligent workplace monitoring are shocking examples of business-related human rights abuses, the Amnesty report said they [the disasters] expose the human cost of systemic lack of regulation of corporate activities and the desperate need for improved occupational health and safety in line with international standards on business and human rights for all workers in Bangladesh.

The compensation cases filed in connection to the Rana Plaza collapse and Tazreen Fashions by the Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST) and other NGOs against relevant state authorities, as well as local building and factory owners, have not been resolved in the last eleven years, it said. 

The report also mentioned that among other remedies, the cases sought just compensation for the reprehensible negligence that led to the deaths and injuries of thousands of workers.

"It's been more than a decade but attempts to establish corporate accountability for the Rana Plaza collapse and Tazreen Fashions fire at national and international levels have been largely unsuccessful, highlighting the precarious conditions the garment workers continue to face in Bangladesh. Rights-based compensation for occupational injuries remains a distant dream with arbitrary limits in labour law and lack of compliance, both of which must change," said Nadia Rahman, Amnesty International's Deputy Regional Director for South Asia.

"In addition to the lack of justice, most workers today are still fighting for decent wages in an industry that brings the most revenue to Bangladesh and paying a heavy price for fighting for their rights," she said.

The report also mentioned that Shahidul Islam, president of the Bangladesh Garment and Industrial Workers Federation (BGIWF) in Gazipur district committee, was killed while trying to secure unpaid wages for factory's workers in June 2023 and at least four garment workers have died during protests around the national minimum wage between October and November 2023.

Since the protests in 2023, at least 35 criminal cases have been filed against garment workers with the First Information Reports (FIRs) accusing around 161 named workers and an estimated total of between 35,900 – 44,450 unnamed workers for taking part in the protests. 25 out of the 35 recent cases have been filed by the factories who are believed to sell to major global fashion brands and retailers.

"We call on the government to remove the limits on compensation for occupational injuries under labour law, ensure those affected receive adequate compensation, and introduce a national data repository on workplace deaths and injuries to ensure transparency and fill the current gaps in official data," said Nadia Rahman.

The deputy regional director said Bangladesh must also ratify and then comply with the two key International Labor Organization (ILO) Conventions 155 and 187 on occupational health and safety along with ILO conventions 102 and 121 on minimum standards of relief for victims of occupational injuries and deaths.

"We also urge the Government of Bangladesh to immediately end the repression of worker rights and ensure that they can exercise their right to freedom of expression and association, including by being able to form and join trade unions at the factory level, without fear of reprisals," said Nadia Rahman.