The rapid growth of today's garment industry in Bangladesh did not come about through a historical process of development, rather its establishment was for the benefit of the western countries. For centuries the people have woven their own clothing. Colonization has destroyed this legendary cotton textile industry. Bangladesh used to grow a lot of cotton, the essential raw material for a cotton textile industry. But the colonial power forced the farmers to cultivate indigo instead of cotton. This resulted in a dependence on western countries for cotton. The variety of cotton plant adapted to the moist Bengal climate is now extinct and Bangladesh most import virtually all its cotton from abroad.
Multinational Corporations serve the purpose of international capitalism. Most of the MNCs have their factories located outside their own countries. They take advantage of cheap labour of the developing countries. One of the main characteristics of international capitalism is that no single commodity is produced within the economic system of one country. The different parts of an unit is being manufactured in different countries. These parts are then being assembled in another country. That part is produced in a country where it can be done very cheaply.
Garment industries in Bangladesh earn profits for MNCs directly or indirectly. EPZ helps the MNCs to earn profits. Export Processing Zone has also been established in Bangladesh. EPZ is a country within a country.
The first EPZ was founded at Shanon Airport in Ireland in 1959. The primary objective was to produce more goods by employing people which would in turn increase the volume of transport of goods. Later on Shanon became the centre of export and consequently this was transformed into an EPZ. The difference between Free Port and EPZ is that in EPZ the setting up of export oriented industries by foreign investors are encouraged. Local industrialists are also offered facilities in building up industrial units. The host country provides a number of facilities to the industries set up within EPZ. - These are (i) transportation (ii) assistance of the Police force in need (iii) tax free import of raw materials, etc. Investors get both short and long term loans sometimes at less than usual rate of interest. The main profit in EPZ comes the use of cheap labour.
The reason behind this lengthy discourse on EPZ is that both bcal and foreign investors, without setting up their units in EPZ are enjoying the facilities of bonded ware houses, tax-holiday government credit facilities, payment of low wages to workers, and others. It may be concluded that wherever the factories may be the industrialists seem to be enjoying all the facilities under EPZ.
In garment industry, there are individuals who have set up industries by investing their own capital and also by taking government loans. More than one industrialists have jointly set up factories and are also owners of group of industries. A group has been formed either by a group of friends, or by different members of a big family. There are joint-ventured factories also. In joint-venture the Bangladeshi businessman has usually a share of 20-50% of total investment. Mostly, the export of garments are controlled by the foreign counterpart.
The reasons that led to the rapid increase of garment industries are (i) Bangladesh is not restricted by the quota system in exporting garments to EEC countries, Canada and the U.S.A. On the other hand, S. Korea, Hong Kong, India and China have set quota, (ii) Cheap labour, though productivity per worker of Bangladesh is less than other Asian countries (one third of Chinese labour) but in countries like Hong Kong, there is a shortage of labour, (iii) Encouragement and facilities extended by the government.
Garment factories started production in Bangladesh in 1960 for domestic market. Small, middle and big businessmen have been marketing garments throughout the country produced by using local and foreign made cloth/fabric. In 1976, one of these businessmen, through the Export Promotion Bureau, exported ready-made garments to France. Later 3 more establishments joined in the export business. In 1984 the numbers of government approved garment industries were 177, 79 were awaiting government approval and another 167 had submitted applications seeking approval. Six garment factories have been established under joint venture, i.e. owned jointly by Bangladeshis and foreign partners from Singapore, South Korea, Hong Kong and India.
Amongst all these factories, many do not have direct buyers. These factories work on sub-contract from big establishments which have received substantial export orders. Even though these factories are working on sub-contract, they are making good profits and are themselves looking for buyers.
Ninety-five percent of the garment factories are located in and around Dhaka city and its industrial areas. In almost all the main areas of Dhaka city one or more garment industries can be found. Outside Dhaka, most industries have been set up in Mirpur area. In this area the industrialists have set up factories in both the government industrial plots and on privately owned lands. Outside Dhaka, most of the garment factories have been established in the port city of Chittagong. According to the government statistics, uptil September 1984, 5 garment factories in Khulna, 1 in Rajshahi, 2 in Pabna and 3 in Comilla have been established. Many others are planning to join this seemingly booming business.
In Dhaka, 85-90% of the industrial units are set up in owners' lands. The rest of the factories are on rented sites. The rent of a medium sized building (accommodating 300 workers) is between Tk.15,000 and Tk.25,000 per month. But in many instances, owners, in order to avoid income tax, show the rent to be much less in the contract form.
From the year 1976 to 1984, the export of garment increased at such a rate that the export of no other commodities, increased by 2,500 times. The rate of increase (in US dollars):
1976-77 - 6,000
1977-78 - 68,000
1978-79 - 103,000
1979-80 - 651,000
1980-81 - 3,242,000
1981-82 - 7,000,000
1982-83 - 12,500,000
1983-84 - 15,000,000
At present Bangladesh made garments are being exported to most countries of Europe, the USA, Australia and a few countries of Asia as well. Initially only shirts and blouses were produced for export.
The Workers
In garment industries, everything from cutting to fixing of buttons is done by machines. These electric machineries are operated by the cheap labour force of this country numbering 168,800. The industrialists often import more cloth than is necessary for production and disposed them in the local market at a much more inflated price.
Women constitute about 80-90% of the total garment workers. Most of them are unmarried within the age group of 11 to 21 years. Those who belong to the older age group are either divorced or discarded by their husbands. The owners are eager to recruit women, particularly, young girls and discarded women because of the fact that these categories of women workers have less bargaining power and are, therefore, comparatively much cheaper. The second reason is that these women do not join labour unions. And even if they do, they do not pose a problem for the management. The male workers are instead, more vocal, have more bargaining power and as such their pay structure is relatively better.
The monthly wage of the workers ranges between Tk.100 and Tk.950. The highest bracket of payment is received by employees on the supervisory level. The supervisors have to operate machinery when needed and also they have to work along with the workers. But employers in the management level receive a monthly salary between Tk.5,000 and Tk.25,000. One foreign buyer has said that Bangladeshi workers get less than 10% of the monthly salary received by a worker in Hong Kong which is about US$300-350 (Tk.7,500 - Tk.8,750). However, the productivity of Bangladeshi workers is lower than the workers in the Philippines and Sri Lanka. The low wages of Bangladeshi workers has brought down the cost of production of garments by 25-30% than in other Asian countries.
The garment workers of Bangladesh have to do 1 hour of compulsory overtime work after their normal duty of 8 hours every day. When the factory owners receive big orders and when they are hard pressed to meet the shipment schedule, the workers have to work the rest of the day and even the whole night. In these occasions, night time meal and two times tea is provided by the management. If required they also have to work during holidays. The overtime charges are calculated on the basis of regular monthly pay and workers are paid exactly the same amount for each hour. Sometimes they are given double the amount of their normal hourly earnings. Even when a worker refuses to work overtime, she is forced to work extra hours because the employer would lock up the front gate of the factory. Nowadays , in some factories women workers are. released only by 10 o'clock at night while men often work through out the night. Maltreatment of the workers is made possible due to the inherent limitations of the labour laws and also because of the active cooperation and support of the government with the owners and the management. An owner of an industry under joint venture said that they would not send Chinese technicians to Bangladesh because they would probably refuse to work under such conditions.
The garment workers are not given any job description or service rule in writing. These are kept with the management and are produced when necessary. Generally all categories of workers are kept on temporary basis for the first 3 months. During this period they are paid between Tk.100 and Tk.250. But in majority of cases they are paid Tk.8 per day. According to labour law workers should become permanent employee after their probationary period and they should be paid in accordance with the pay structure. But most factories violate this regulation. Workers are kept on temporary basis for as long as 6 to 9 months and even a year and all through they are paid only the wages of a trainee. Some factories keep a certain percentage of the earnings of the workers as security money so that no one can leave during one's probationary period. The money is only returned to the worker after the completion of 3 or 6 months. It should be mentioned that in most of the factories, the pay scale as sanctioned by the government is not followed.
In a survey of the 171 published advertisements in the different daily newspapers of the country in 1983-84, it has been revealed that none of these mentioned the pay scale of garment workers. Some mentioned that salary is negotiable. In this way the owners control the wages of the workers.
Working Conditions
The educational level of workers ranges between illiteracy and graduates. However, the number of workers in the group between class V and Intermediate School is the highest. Those who are below this level are not very much accepted, though there are quite a few women who are illiterate. Those who are in the category of supervisors, their educational level varies from intermediate school to post-Graduate. More and more University graduates are taking up jobs in these industries.
About 30% of the workers have come directly from the rural areas. The rest have been living in urban areas for the last one or more years with their families or with relatives. The male workers generally live in 'mess'. While 18-20% of the female workers live in slums. In Mohakhali, Mirpur, Mohammedpur, Badda areas, four-fifth of the women workers live together in 'mess'. A few industries have arranged for rented houses for its women workers or have made arrangements for accommodations. Many of them have to travel a distance of 3 to 7 miles every day either by bus or on foot. Some factories arrange transport for the women workers who have to return home late in the night after working overtime. Or they have to return by rickshaw on their own. Some others even have to give Tk. 5/10 as transportation fee returning home.
Majority of the established factories have good ventilation system. But even in these establishments, toilet facilities are very lacking. It is not uncommon to find in some factories that there are only 2 toilets for 100 or more women workers. Most of the factories lack separate toilet facilities for men and women. Security system in garment factories is very strict. At the beginning of the day workers are let in after their identity cards are checked then the gate is locked. The gate is opened again only during lunch time. Every worker is subjected to body search at the end of the day. Such strict measure, according to the management, is to prevent workers from taking away things.
Ninety-four percent of the workers expressed that they do not want to see their children, brothers and sisters in this profession. Having no other alternative they have taken up this job. A large number of them would stay in this work in future and hope that they would get promoted some time. Others would leave as soon as they get better opportunities.
Workers are subjected to different types of oppression by the owners. They appoint their relatives in higher posts partly for their own self interest and benefit. These people keep the owners informed about the workers and on the basis of these information the management punishes or harasses them.
A worker of an old garment industry, after having worked from 8 a.m. in the morning to 9 p.m. was asked by the management to do overtime. When he refused he was shown to be absent for the whole day. In another factory the same owner once locked up the gate to force to women workers to work till 11 pjn. Another woman lost her job because she used up more than 5 minutes in the toilet. In the middle of this year when women workers of that factory joined the labour union and demanded more wages, the management terrorised the workers by ransacking their homes with the help of hired hoodlums and ousted them from that 'bustee'. (slum)
In one recently established factory, the time keeper keeps records of how many times a worker goes to the toilet, to the stairs or the roof and accordingly for exactly that same period of time she is kept standing outside in the street and her medical leave is forfeited. The working time is from 8 o'clock in the morning till 4.30 in the afternoon. For the first 3 months of work, workers are paid Tk.100/- per month, Tk.l25/- for the next three months and after that they are paid Tk.150/- per month.
In another factory a worker had to bear his own medical expenses after getting his hand chopped off while operating a machine. The owner, even after being approached by other workers, did not give anything for his treatment.
While ironing, a broken needle pierced an eye of a female worker. Her eyes bleed became swollen. She then lost consciousness. This happened at 11.00 a.m. But the management refused to give her a gate pass before 4.00 p.m. simply on the ground that she was incapable of going to the hospital alone. The authority was not willing to let another worker accompany her as the establishment would lose the labour of that worker also. Finally, under the pressure of the workers, she was allowed to leave only at 1.00 p.m. After getting well at her own cost, the Management refused to take her back on the ground that she has to wear spectacles. She was told that if she has to work there, she cannot wear glasses. Though she had problems with her vision, she was compelled to discard her glasses and now she is gradually losing her eye sight
In one factory, when the workers formed an union, the owner had the workers beaten up by hired musclemen and the leading workers was stabbed. In order to foil the attempts of the workers to organise, the owner spent Tk.l0,000/- to Tk.20,000/each time to hire mercanaries/hoodlums.
In the same factory, once in protest of the dismissal of 5 persons, the workers stopped work and waited outside the factory. The owner informed the police and 2 truck loads of police arrived. They started beating at random. Some workers were forced to enter the factory while others ran away. If any worker speaks against the owner, he files murder cases against him and thus is able to terrorise and harrass him.
Despite the harrassment from the management, workers of 10 leading garment factories have set up unions. Labour unions have been organised in establishment where there are large number of male workers. Women workers are more afraid to organise unions because owners find it comparatively easy to dismiss them.
On the other hand the union of the garment factory owners is very organised and powerful. Garment workers neither have the strength to bargain nor the financial power to stand up to them. One worker said, 'If the owners union publishes a press release against us, we do not have any money to publish any reply on the national newspaper' It is necessary for the workers to be organised in a massive scale.
At the doorsteps of this rapidly growing garment industry in Bangladesh awaits the quota system. Anytime the EEC countries, the USA and Canada can impose quota restrictions on garments imported from Bangladesh. Apparently it may seem that this would be in the interests of the workers of the importing countries. But in reality this would not be. The decision of imposition or non-imposition of quota, both are under the power of the capitalists.
Ref: Industrial labour - a research paper.
Dr. Shelly Fieldman & Faizila Banu
This article is originally in Bengali. The English translation is by Mahurb Hossain