The concept of paid sick leave, a right guaranteed by the International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions, is not in practice in Bangladesh. Day-labourers and readymade garment workers in the country are deprived of this facility. To most of them, leave means staying out of work without any pay. The Section 16 of the Shops and Establishments Act, however, says that every worker shall be entitled to sick leave with full wages for a total period of fourteen days in a year. This is hardly maintained anywhere in our country for the workers, who work on a daily contract basis.
It will be inhumane if we do not think of our workers, who work relentlessly to make our businesses or enterprises successful. It is our responsibility to take care of these hard-working individuals by providing them with at least a 14-day sick leave annually with full payment. It is time we heard the unheard.
Md. Kamruzzaman Walid,
Student of Department of Accounting,
North South University, Dhaka,
mohammad.walid@northsouth.edu