Home ›› 08 Jul 2020 ›› World Biz
Ans: Women contribute more or less to every industry in Bangladesh. They are well-set in construction, FMCG and pharmaceutical sectors. However, the biggest contribution comes from the Ready-Made Garments (RMG) sector. It is the biggest industry in Bangladesh where women play the most pivotal role.
Ans: Around 80% of the total workforce in the RMG sector are women. The entire industry depends on their hard labour. According to the latest data, about 28 billion US dollars come from RMG sector each year to Bangladesh. Around 80% of that forex is contributed by the women of our country.
Ans: I believe that women and men work hard equally and put similar efforts to take the industry ahead. Women do not lag behind by any means whatsoever. Furthermore, in my own experience, I have noticed that women are more dedicated to their profession and are prone to be loyal to their employers for a longer period of time. This increases efficiency in the long run.
Ans: In my opinion, a very limited amount of works done by women are being recognised. However, it is still not enough. Women are still playing second fiddle to men, despite being able to work equally hard. There is a stereotype among people that women are less productive just because of their gender and this mindset should be abolished. Such an incorrect perception will also be detrimental to the future generation as they will neglect women and will not understand how important they are as a workforce. It has been and also in future will leave a negative impact on the overall economic growth of the country as women’s contribution is not valued properly and fairly. Financial compensation is also biased in our country as women do get paid less than men in a lot of sectors. This behaviour needs to change.
Ans: If we compare it to the western world, women occupy top positions in a lot of prominent companies. Companies like Youtube, Pepsi, General Motors, Lockheed Martin have female CEOs and are operating well under their stewardship. They have fought for their rights, protested against discrimination and succeeded in gaining equal pay and treatment. Even in India, women are highly empowered and appreciated for their hard work and given a lot of incentives for their dedication. They are respected for being a persistent worker and a mother/wife at the same time. It is highly heartening to see our neighbouring countries appreciating women, whereas people in our own country do not acknowledge women’s contributions.
Ans: As discussed previously, it has been evident that women are underpaid. This has been a serious issue for years now. In a country, where our respected leaders including Prime Minister are woman, it’s much unexpected that women would be treated so unfairly. Even in modern corporate houses, which boast of having a “female-friendly environment”, pay lower salaries to women compared to men. When such top brands portray as a pioneer of women empowerment but do not practice it, it becomes quite disheartening and hypocritical.
Ans: This actually varies from sector to sector. In my experience, I have seen in a lot of corporate houses my female friends get paid 20-30% less than their male counterparts. Also, women who work as labours get paid half the salary of the men. Most women, who work as labours, get paid less than men at all times. According to statistics, women get paid 15% less than men as labour. Also, only 27% of women get the opportunity to work as labours in Bangladesh, whereas in Nepal it is well over 80%. However, compared to Pakistani day labourers, which is at 25%, Bangladeshi female workforce is somewhat better, however, the difference is quite insignificant. Also, ethnic female workers get paid even less; at times, they get paid 60% less than male workers. This discrimination is depriving the government of taxes and if this ends, the GDP will rise drastically.
The women can’t protest for fear of losing their jobs. This discrimination is actually motivating educated women to migrate to other countries, causing a brain drain.
Ans: The gender pay gap in the world is currently at 60%. That means in 60% of the countries, women are paid less than men. In countries like Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Pakistan and Iran, women get paid 50% less than that of men. However, in these countries, women do not get too many opportunities to work, hence they get paid less and the statistics skew in the favour of men. But in Bangladesh, women do get opportunities to work, not just opportunity, women represent almost 50% of the total workforce in the country. However, they do not get treated equally. So, in my opinion, is the bigger tragedy that providing labour but not being compensated for it.
Ans: Although our Prime Minister instructed the industries to treat women fairly, this is not being practised. It is mostly because women themselves are not aware of these laws. Also, the women who do want equal rights, are being sacked by companies without any proper cause. As Bangladesh has a large population, it’s easy to get access to cheap labour and companies can replace a person quite easily since the competition is so tough. So, companies do not think twice before letting someone go. As a result, women are simply being silent regarding their ill-treatment for the fear of losing their jobs. The owners of the companies need to act ethically and recognize that women are playing important roles in the advancement of their industries. Women get compensation which is not enough for them to sustain their families, they will stop working and focus on other things.
This will be a huge blow to the industrial sector of Bangladesh. We need to look at the bigger picture and ensure women are being treated fairly.
Ans: Primarily, the government needs to enforce laws which would dictate that women must get equal payment as men, working the same hours. Secondly, it is not just depended on the government, the industry owners themselves must act ethically and ensure that their female employees are treated fairly. When a woman flourishes she is rumoured to be unethical; even when she is the hardest working employee in the company. These rumours need to quashed as soon as it sprouts and rumour mongers must be reprimanded. As these rumours not only affect the professional life of a woman, but also her personal life. Additionally, policies should be implemented so that company can’t recruit without being gender-biased. Companies for some reason, do not want to recruit women for top managerial positions which require frequent visits to different companies. They show safety concerns for the female employees as an excuse for not hiring them. If a male employee is safe how can a female one be unsafe? These things must be addressed and remedied.
teb/wi
