Conditions mandatory to form trade unions will be eased through the upcoming amendment to Bangladesh Labour Act, in a bid to comply with recommendations from Western communities, particularly the European Union (EU) and the United States.
The Tripartite Consultative Council (TCC) has agreed in principle to reduce the threshold of conditions required to form trade unions, but it is yet to define the minimum sign up percentage of a factory’s total workforce for this purpose.
Besides, the council has also agreed to quadruple the owners’ penalty for illegal strikes or lock-outs to Tk 20,000, and a worker’s penalty for similar offences to remain unchained at Tk 5,000.
The TCC aims to resolve all disputes in February this year, and will send the amendment proposal to the labour ministry for amendment of the law. The 12th national parliament would then pass the amendment, and send it to the president for approval.
However, despite an amendment on the horizon, workers will remain barred from forming trade unions in factories located in Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA) zones.
Confirming the matter to The Business Post, a TCC member said on condition of anonymity, “We are taking into consideration the EU and US interests, as well as the International Labour Organization (ILO) guidelines.
“We are optimistic that the upcoming amendment will strengthen protection of labour rights.”
He continued, “The labour leaders want to withdraw the threshold to form a trade union, but the owners want to keep a minimum percentage requirement. It is just a matter of time to settle this particular issue.”
On December 2 last year, the parliament passed the “Bangladesh Labour (Amendment) Bill, and forwarded it to the president for approval. The US and European Union (EU) however had objections to the bill, and said it deprived the workers of their rights.
Besides, both the trade union leaders and business owners claimed that the Ministry of Labour and Employment is amending the act without taking into consideration the TCC recommendation.
This happened even though the TCC is empowered both by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the labour act.
National Garment Workers Federation President and Co-founder Amirul Haque Amin had said on the issue, “The labour act amendment procedure is not acceptable. We identified 56 issues. But the ministry sent the act to the parliament without arbitration in the TCC meeting.”
President Mohammed Shahabuddin, however, withheld approval to the bill amending the labour law, and sent it back to parliament for reconsideration due to concerns over a new provision.
As a result, the bill returned to the TCC and its members are now reviewing all issues to amend.
TCC member and Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) Vice President Fazlee Shamim Ehsan had said, “It is good for everyone that the president returned the labour amendment bill, and we have the chance to further review it.”
Pressure from EU, US
The EU and the US have been raising their concerns for some time over Bangladesh’s labour act, saying that the law is not protecting workers’ rights.
The development partners, who are Bangladesh’s 70 per cent export earnings shareholders, indicated that they may take firm action, even ban EU GSP, and impose sanctions, if the country fails to ensure labour rights.
In mid-November last year, an EU delegation visited Bangladesh to assess workers' rights progress and evaluate labour law amendments.
During their visit, the delegation met with various stakeholders, including Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) on November 14.
During the meeting, one of the participants said the EU delegation were not happy over the new labour act amendment [which was returned to review by the president].
In November last year, BGMEA President Faruque Hassan had told The Business Post, “The EU team provided a roadmap and recommendations on labour law amendments, focusing on issues such as child labour, the EPZ labour act, trade union formation, and general labour rights.
“They also said though there is no child labour in the RMG sector, other sectors are still recruiting underage workers. If this continues, they [EU] are likely to eliminate Bangladesh from the GSP policy.”
Diplomatic sources had confirmed that the EU officials came to Bangladesh as part of a regular monitoring mission to assess compliance with conditions for the EBA trade regime.
Bangladesh is a key priority for the EU, with significant annual business, and it is a leading beneficiary under the GSP EU’s external action service director Paola Pampaloni, the head of the delegation, told The Business Post that they came to Bangladesh to deal with trade and employment issues.
“The labour condition and the implementation of the ILO convention, which are included in our GSP regulation,” she said, putting emphasis on the importance of the EBA trade regime and discussing labour law amendments with various stakeholders, including BGMEA.
She mentioned past negotiations on a national action plan, highlighting delays in implementing commitments, particularly in the labour legislation reform programme. The EU's visit is timely, considering the upcoming new GSP policy for the 2024-34 tenure.
On November 16, US President Joe Biden signed the first-ever presidential memorandum outlining the administration’s commitment to worker rights globally.
The same day, US Secretary of State Antony J Blinken said, “We will work to hold accountable those who threaten, who intimidate, who attack union leaders, labour rights defenders, labour organisations – including using things like sanctions, trade penalties, and visa restrictions – all the tools in our kit.”
On November 20, the Bangladesh embassy in Washington sent a letter to Ministry of Commerce Senior Secretary Tapan Kanti Ghosh, stating that there are reasons to believe that Bangladesh may be one of the targets of the US' recently released memorandum on labour rights.
The letter also mentioned that the policy would be another political tool to take measures on the pretext of labour issues.
What’s in the amendment?
The TCC members, seeking anonymity, said they will reduce the threshold of trade union formation.
As per the amendment – that the president had rejected earlier – the signatures of 15 per cent of workers are required to form a trade union in a company having over 3,000 workers, and the signatures of 20 per cent workers are needed in a company having less than 3,000 workers.
As per the existing law, 20 per cent signatures are required in both cases. In the upcoming amendment, the signature requirement is likely to be reduced to 15 per cent for a factory having less than 3,000 workers, and 10 per cent for a factory having over 3,000 workers.
For illegal strikes and lock-outs, the penalty of owners will increase to Tk 20,000 from existing Tk 5,000, but the penalty for workers will remain unchanged.
Maternity leave will be increased to 120 days from 112 days (16 weeks). A woman can enjoy this leave at her convenience, before or after the delivering of her baby.
The upcoming amendment will take a strong stance on protecting children from labour, TCC members said, adding that the formation of trade unions will remain barred in EPZ areas even after amendment.
Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) Vice President Ehsan said, “We, the owners, always treat the formation of trade unions in a positive light. But we want quality trade unions, not just name only.
“The government has a plan to amend the EPZ labour act in 2025, and after the amendment, these areas workers will also be able to exercise trade union rights.”
Tuhin/Sairas
