Majority of the female garment workers take financial decisions, including those on salary management and spending, in consultation with their family members, according to a latest survey whose results were published on Monday.
On the other hand, most male workers (compared to women) take financial decisions on their own.
About 39 per cent of the surveyed women garment workers reported that they took the decisions about salary management on their own, while the rate is 65 per cent for men.
Besides, only 24 per cent women garment workers solely take their spending decisions, while 45 per cent male take their own spending decisions, the survey found.
South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (SANEM), in partnership with Microfinance Opportunities (MFO), conducted the survey by interviewing 1,367 garment workers in Chattogram, Dhaka city, Gazipur, Narayanganj and Savar.
The survey, titled 'Garment Workers in Bangladesh: Gender Dynamics and Money Decisions', assessed impact of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic on overall working and living conditions of the garment workers in Bangladesh.
It looked into aspects of salary management, expenditure, savings and education decisions.
The survey showed that female workers are more likely (than male workers) to make financial decisions in consultation with their family or household members, and male workers are more likely (than female workers) to make financial decisions on their own.
According to the survey, 44 per cent of garment workers manage their salary on their own. Some 36 per cent of garment workers reported involving someone else in making decisions about their salary.
About 39 per cent women reported sharing decision-making responsibilities, compared to 23 per cent for men, it showed.
Regarding the decisions on spending money, 29 per cent of garment workers reported of making spending decisions on their own.
The male and female ratio regarding own spending decisions is 45 and 24.
Some 65 per cent women, compared to 46 per cent men, said spending decisions are taken by the whole family, according to the findings. Regarding savings, the survey found that 35 per cent make their own savings decisions, while women are less likely - 30 per cent - to make savings decisions on their own compared to 49 per cent for men.
It also revealed that 55 per cent garment workers make savings decisions with the entire family, including themselves.
Some 8.0 per cent workers reported someone else as the person, making decisions on savings, and 2.0 per cent opted not to respond.
In making children's education decisions, only 23 per cent of the surveyed women reported making it on their own, compared to 38 per cent for men.
Some 67 per cent of garment workers responded making shared decisions for children's education with the entire family, while 70 per cent of those, sharing education-related decision-making responsibilities with the family, are women, compared to 55 per cent for men.
The survey, however, found that since the beginning of April the decision-maker had changed, suggesting a change in who in the household was working at the time.
It found only 6.0 per cent, 4.0 per cent, 2.0 per cent and 1.0 per cent change in taking salary, expenditure, savings and children's education respectively.
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