ZAKIR HOSSAIN CHOWDHURY
It’s a very good begin, however Bangladesh’s $40 billion garment trade nonetheless has a protracted technique to go. The shift to environmentalism on the manufacturing facility stage hasn’t translated to improved outcomes for the sector’s 4.4 million employees.
Wage theft and delayed funds are widespread. The minimal wage, some 12,500 taka per 30 days (about $113), is way beneath the $200 proposed by unions—which has meant frequent strikes and protests over pay, additional time, and job safety. “Since Rana Plaza, constructing security and manufacturing facility circumstances have improved, however the mindset stays unchanged,” says A.Ok.M. Ashraf Uddin, government director of the Bangladesh Labour Basis, a nonprofit labor rights group. “Revenue nonetheless comes first, and employees’ freedom of speech is but to be realized.”
ZAKIR HOSSAIN CHOWDHURY
Within the worst case, greener trade practices might truly exacerbate inequality. Smaller factories dominate the sector, they usually wrestle to afford upgrades. However with out these upgrades, companies might discover themselves excluded from sure markets. A type of is the European Union, which plans to require firms to handle human rights and environmental issues in provide chains beginning in 2027. A cleaner Buriganga River mends only a small nook of an enormous tapestry of want.
Zakir Hossain Chowdhury is a visible journalist based mostly in Bangladesh.