Economists and development activists on Monday said that the wage rate of the country’s RMG workers was not increasing in tandem with the increase in production and export earning in the sector. They said that an increase in wage of the workers would ultimately result in higher productivity and sustainability of the sector. ‘Although the production of readymade garment has had three-fold increase since the financial year 2006-2007, the labour force has not increased accordingly. This indicates the wage rate is not increasing as per the productivity,’ said MA Taslim, Dhaka University economics department chairman at a dialogue on RMG issues.
Power and Participation Research Centre organised the dialogue at LGED auditorium, reports United News of Bangladesh.
‘Given the higher increase in export earning compared to the number of labour force, the employers cannot deny the increase in profit,’ Taslim said.
‘The employers can only deny making more profits only on the ground that the capital labour ratio is decreasing. If that happens, they must be accused of unsustainable expansion of the industry,’ he said.
The DU professor also noted that the scarcity of specific data on the number of workers in the sector still did not allow an economist to figure out the accurate ‘value marginal product’ upon which the wages of workers were fixed in best practicing countries.
The number of workers employed in RMG, textiles and all aligned sectors was counted 1.7 million in the Labour Survey 2005, although the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association said the RMG sector alone employed 2.4 million workers at that time.
‘I’ve requested three former BGMEA presidents to have an accurate database of workers to resolve the issues more systematically. We still don’t have the database,’ he complained.
Speaking on the occasion, IndustriAll Bangladesh Council secretary general Roy Ramesh said the wages of the RMG workers in the country was nowhere near the amount needed to ensure the bare provision of a living.
‘Even to be in line with the Millennium Development Goals, a person must earn above $120 a month to be able to remain above the poverty line,’ he said.
He also proposed a workers’ welfare fund and introduction of retirement benefits for the RMG workers.
ActionAid Bangladesh country director Farah Kabir said the employers as well as the buyers should take the responsibility of the workers.
Zafrullah Chowdhury, founder of Gonoshasthaya Kendra, said, ‘Nutritious food and safe water are essential to keep the workers healthy. But the current wage is not sufficient to buy enough food.’
‘Nutrition is the precondition of good health and also good productivity,’ he said.
Zafrullah presented a model of health insurance for the RMG workers that could be developed in this industry for the betterment of the workers.
In the model, the worker has to pay Tk 25 every month and the employer has to pay Tk 1700 every year for each worker.
The insurance could cover most of the treatments, including surgeries, medicines, gynaecological problem, ECO, ECG, dental and also workplace hazard.
AMM Nasiruddin, former health secretary, said a pilot health insurance would be introduced soon at some factories at Savar.
A database on Rana Plaza tragedy was launched formally at the programme.
Hossain Zillur Rahman, executive chairman PPRC, said they would provide jobs to 100 Rana Plaza workers.
Among others, Iktedar Ahmed, former chair of government’s Minimum Wage Board, was present.
-With New Age input
