State Minister for Labour and Employment Mojibul Haque Chunnu asked Wednesday the factory inspectors to be careful about implementation of all rules and regulations of the labour law during their inspection to factories.
"We want complete execution of the labour law, and the factory inspectors should be cautious about it," he said at the inauguration of a two-day training programme on 'Bangladesh Labour Law (Focusing on the 2013 Amendment)' at a city hotel.
It was organised by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), Bangladesh country office in collaboration with the Department of Labour (DoL). About 30 DoL officials participated in the training.
Citing the deadly incident in Rana Plaza last year, which claimed about 1,134 lives, the state minister said the building was totally out of inspection for four years in a row before the tragedy.
"I called the two inspectors, who were responsible for the area, in my office to know about the matter. They informed me that after laying out the building four years back, no inspection was conducted in it."
Mr Chunnu said the inspectors gave the lame excuse of manpower shortage.
About implementation of the terms and conditions by the Accord and the Alliance, as emphasised by the foreign buyers, the state minister said most of these are logical, and even the factory owners also know it.
"But, implementation of all these requires time."
The state minister said trade union is not so essential now, as the factory owners are much concerned about the labour issues.
"The need of trade union was essential when the factories were mostly government owned, and the labour organisations were vocal to realise their different demands," he mentioned.
Mr Chunnu reiterated the importance of owner-labour good relationship for maintaining congenial atmosphere in the factories.
"Laws can hardly bring changes to any sector without proper implementation. The essential thing is to develop a positive relationship," he said.
ILO country director Srinivas B Reddy, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) president Md Atiqul Islam, and Promoting Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work in Bangladesh project director Uttam Kumar Das addressed the programme, among others, with Labour and Employment Secretary Mikail Shipar in the chair.
