Compliance in garments industry in Bangladesh

Compliance in the garments industry in Bangladesh

Garment industry in Bangladesh has grown tremendously in the last three decades. However, the conditions of physical and social consent, especially those related to workplace safety and security, do not match the growth of this sector. While it is a fact that Bangladesh has made real progress on a number of compliance issues, particularly in the elimination of child labor, the garment sector has a long way to go to ensure a safe environment for its workers. A large number of factories are still operating with weak physical and social compliance. In the last 10 years, numerous incidents in the country’s garment sector have claimed the lives of more than 2,000 workers. International garment retailers who are the source of goods in Bangladesh, as well as the European Union, are focusing on ensuring safety compliance and improving the transparency of the supply chain. Accord on Fire and Building Safety consists of more than 180 global apparel brands (mostly European). A group of 26 American retailers formed an alliance for the safety of Bangladeshi workers and announced an indefinite initiative for five years. The initiative seeks to improve factory safety in Bangladesh's garment industry by 100% inspecting factories by alliance members, improving general safety standards, sharing inspection results transparently, and ensuring that all alliance factories actively support democratic elections and successfully manage workers' participation committees in each factory.

However, the potential of the garment sector in Bangladesh depends not only on the availability of cheap labor and the liberal policies of the government but also on compliance with the code of conduct. Compliance means obeying something or losing to the will of others. The garment sector in Bangladesh needs to improve various social problems related to the factory work environment and industry. International buyers are especially careful to adhere to the Code of Conduct before ordering any imports. Poor households, savings system, ineffective monitoring, and control system, chaotic production layout, lack of team-based work, rented factory premises, narrow stairs, closed environment, inadequate light air, clean drinking water, separate washrooms for men and women, etc. are common practices in most garment factories.

The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association or BGMEA and the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association or BKMEA set standards for compliance with factories such as safe stairs, basic fire equipment, and relevant fire extinguishing authorities. Ensuring building construction, group insurance for workers, hygienic sanitation facilities and first aid kits, as well as minimum wages and flexible jobs for workers. There are many recognized compliance organizations worldwide like ILO, ISO 14001, WRAP, BSCI, ETI, and SAI, FLA. Garments factory owners and the government can seek the help of those companies to improve the quality of the environment and the products of their industry. In this study, the existing compliance practices of garment factories in Bangladesh, especially those located in Dhaka city, have been examined. This paper seeks to express the acceptability of the consent provision.

This is a pioneering study to explore the challenges faced by HR workers to ensure compliance in the garment industry in Bangladesh. Due to many accidents involving factory physical infrastructure and unjust labor practices in Bangladesh's garment sector, including poor or unpaid wages, labor quality, and workplace safety concerns have received major attention from the government, ILOs, international NGOs, trade unions, and global buyers. Garment factories are now under strict surveillance to ensure international labor standards and occupational safety on their premises. The future prospects of this sector largely depend on the successful implementation of the compliance issue. The present study shows that Bangladesh has so far achieved ultimate success only in eliminating child labor. As for other areas of compliance, HR workers are still struggling to bring it into the normal practice of the industry. The most important challenges for human resources people are lack of top management support, followed by lack of awareness of workers about their rights, lack of government intervention, and poor literacy of workers. The results suggest that clothing owners need to change their mindsets. Their vision of short-term profit by reducing production costs should be turned into a sustainable business based on fairness and efficiency. They should feel the urge to ensure a better work environment, including labor quality, occupational health and safety, and other concerns that will reap economic benefits in the long run. Governments, NGOs, and trade unions have a role to play in educating workers about their rights. The initiatives taken by the International Buyers Accord and the Alliance must be sustained with a sincere commitment. Ultimately, the government must enforce the law through training, dialogue, and fair and frequent inspections.