Socioeconomic Deprivation and Garment Worker Movement in Bangladesh: A Sociological Analysis

The Ready Made Garment (RMG) sector in Bangladesh accounts for more than 75 per cent of the total income from export and the largest employer of women in the industrial sector. In this study, we examine the socioeconomic deprivation and garment worker movement in Bangladesh using data both from primary (a sample survey) and secondary (media reports) sources. We analyse the data using quantitative techniques. We find that majority of the RMG workers earn below minimum wage of Tk. 1620.00 per month and cannot save any money after covering expenditures for food and accommodation. Most of the workers work overtime and get only 20 per cent more despite the provision of double payments for overtime hours. We also find that a vast majority of the workers jobs are not permanent and have limited access to toilet and other sanitation facilities. In addition, almost half of the workers are either verbally or physically abused by the management. RMG workers are compelled to work long hours with no access to sick leave, weekend holiday, annual vacation, pension, bonus, festival allowance, and trade union in the one hand and constant pressure to increase their productivity on the other. For these reasons, the RMG sector has been marked by fierce worker movement since 2006. To ensure stability in the RMG sector, both the Government and RMG owners should take necessary initiatives to ensure reasonable wage structure and very good work environment for the workers. Policy implications of the worker movement in the context of Bangladesh are discussed.