RMG unrest blamed on non-compliance
Friday, 23 July 2010
FE Report
Speakers at a seminar Thursday blamed non-compliance for one of the major reasons behind the repeated bouts of violence in the country's billion dollars worth garment sector.
They said some 70 to 75 per cent apparel factories have met the requirement of compliance and the rest have failed to reach the mark which is responsible for the intermittent violence in the RMG sector.
The remarks came at the 15th meeting of the Social Compliance Forum on the garment industry held at the conference room of the commerce ministry. Commerce minister M Faruk Khan chaired the programme.
During the meeting, it was decided that all the organisations and institutions would have to use a 'unified format' to monitor the compliance issue at the garment factories.
The meeting set a three months' deadline for the older factories to reconstruct their structures for ensuring workers' safety. The time was extended for forming 'participation committees' in each of the units.
It also urged the two leading apparel bodies -- BGMEA and BKMEA -- to take stern action against owners of the non-complying factories.
The meeting was attended by commerce ministry top officials, representatives from BGMEA, BKMEA, Bangladesh Frozen Food Exporters Association and Social Compliance Forum.
The observation on the RMG sector unrest vis-à-vis non-compliance comes at a time when the sector has been witnessing a number of violent protests by thousands of garment workers over wage-hike and better working condition that forced the government to form a committee for a new pay scale of the country's three million apparel labourers.
Speakers at a seminar Thursday blamed non-compliance for one of the major reasons behind the repeated bouts of violence in the country's billion dollars worth garment sector.
They said some 70 to 75 per cent apparel factories have met the requirement of compliance and the rest have failed to reach the mark which is responsible for the intermittent violence in the RMG sector.
The remarks came at the 15th meeting of the Social Compliance Forum on the garment industry held at the conference room of the commerce ministry. Commerce minister M Faruk Khan chaired the programme.
During the meeting, it was decided that all the organisations and institutions would have to use a 'unified format' to monitor the compliance issue at the garment factories.
The meeting set a three months' deadline for the older factories to reconstruct their structures for ensuring workers' safety. The time was extended for forming 'participation committees' in each of the units.
It also urged the two leading apparel bodies -- BGMEA and BKMEA -- to take stern action against owners of the non-complying factories.
The meeting was attended by commerce ministry top officials, representatives from BGMEA, BKMEA, Bangladesh Frozen Food Exporters Association and Social Compliance Forum.
The observation on the RMG sector unrest vis-à-vis non-compliance comes at a time when the sector has been witnessing a number of violent protests by thousands of garment workers over wage-hike and better working condition that forced the government to form a committee for a new pay scale of the country's three million apparel labourers.