BIDS for steps to ensure more female supervisors, managers

Removing barriers, ensuring access to education and relevant training are crucial for increasing the number of women at supervisory and mid-level management positions in the country’s apparel sector.

Experts made the recommendation at the annual conference of Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) on Friday, also putting an emphasis on increasing participation of female production workers in export-oriented apparel manufacturing and related industries.

They suggested implementing programmes to attract and retain female workers, offer internship opportunities, skill-specific training to up-skill female production workers and include more women in mid-skill occupations.

At the event, BIDS unveiled a research paper titled “Jobs to Careers: Apparel Exports and Career Paths for Women in Developing Countries,” prepared by Gladys Lopez-Acevedo and Mexico Vergara.

The study mentions a number of as policy recommendations, such as focus programmes on supplying graduates who are employable, and aligned with industrial policy development, and increase access to education to promote female participation in careers.

It also suggested breaking the glass ceilings, which are the career barriers for female employees in the readymade garments industry.

According to the World Economic Forum, Bangladesh topped the South Asian countries in gender equality in 2018, ranking 48th among 149 nations. Moreover, Bangladesh is the only country in the world where the factor-weighted hourly wage gender pay gap is positive.

However, according to The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), around 4 million workers are working here and more than 60 percent per cent are women. But only a handful of female employees work in the industry’s mid-level management.

As recommendations for increasing female employment, BIDS said, “Reform legal barriers that reduce women’s access to and permanence in employment opportunities, promote inclusive workplace practices, and engage foreign support and involvement.”

The research team found that low demand for services due to insufficient national income and low educational levels are the main barriers to career development for women.

BIDS pointed out that high-income countries focus on research and development (R&D), design, marketing and post-sales service activities as their apparel export growth strategy, which also fits into the jobs to careers transition.

But middle income countries are focusing on design, logistic sourcing, logistic distribution and post-sales. On the other hand, low income countries are only focused on manufacturing activities.

According to the BIDS research, “To achieve the goal of having more women in higher-skilled, better paid, and life-fulfilling occupations, national programmes should consider their simultaneous implementation.

“Fortunately, today, thanks to vast empirical evidence on successful policies, the quiet revolution of women’s advancement from jobs to careers need not take the 100 years that it took in the United States.”