Experts for ‘Labour Reform Commission’ to ensure workers' rights

Labour rights experts on Saturday urged the Interim government to constitute a “Labour Reform Commission” to amend the existing labour laws to ensure workers' rights.

“The working class of people in the country are still deprived of their rights . . .The current interim government has so far formed five commissions on five issues, but has not yet formed a labour reform commission,” Executive Director of Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies Syed Sultan Ahmed told a workshop in a city hotel.

Solidarity Center, International Lawyers Assisting Workers (ILAW) Network and Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS) jointly organised the discussion on “The Amendment of the Bangladesh Labour Act, 2016, Protection of Workers Rights.”

Representatives of different workers union including garments workers, tea gardens and construction workers, tanneries, shrimp cultivation and domestic workers, lawyers and Bangladesh Labour Rights Journalists Forum (BLRF) joined the discussion when they shared their opinion and thoughts on the issue.

Advocate Nazrul Islam, senior program officer of Solidarity Center presented the recommendations and BILS Executive Director Syed Sultan Uddin Ahmmed moderated the programme.

They also urged the incumbent government to formulate a specific labour law to bring the provisions of the country's existing labour laws in line with reality and make it inclusive for realising the rights of workers of all sectors in Bangladesh.

The speakers said the labour law is to ensure the rights of both employers and workers. “Till now there are 21,000 cases in the labour court . . . These cases are not resolved quickly but these should be disposed of soon,” Advocate Nazrul Islam mentioned.
 
He proposed at least 40 recommendations on different issues for the amendment of the Bangladesh Labour Act, 2006.

The recommendations included bringing all workers in Bangladesh irrespective of formal or informal sectors under the purview of a specific law, ensuring trade union rights, eliminating complexities in the trade union registration process, increasing compensation for victims of accidents at the workplace, increasing maternity leave of female workers to six months, enhancing capacity of the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments, accelerating litigation process of the Labour Court and formulating relevant laws to safeguard female workers from gender-based violence and harassment.

Labour rights expert Nazrul said, “Under the present changed situation, it is proper time to form a ‘Labour Reform Commission’ to address labour issues in the country.”

IndustiALL Bangladesh Council President AM Nazim Uddin said, “We need to bring all the workers to specific and well-defined categories to ensure a social safety net for them. The government has a lot to do to this end.”

Amendments to the Labour Act must be carefully considered and comprehensive, even if the process takes time, he added.

In the event, ILO Senior Program Officer Chowdhury Albab Kadir said, “We have to curtail all unnecessary formalities to labour justice in worker rights issues.  BGMEA (Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association) has a body for arbitration, the Department of Labour has another, and the hassle in the legal process knows no bounds.”