We know sustainable jobs, secure incomes and social protection are the basics of a just economy. But the so-called globalisation, free-market economy, trade liberalisation and neo-liberal model of capitalism could not secure incomes but widened income inequality and compelled over one billion workers to go unfed or half-fed. The world has witnessed two great economic recessions in ten years' time with an unprecedentedly high level of unemployment, precarious work and global wage slump in the absence of social protection.
International financial institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) compelled governments to withdraw subsidies in the areas of agriculture, health, public education, medical facilities and transport and made the planet a hell for the poor and working people. It is unfortunate that a worker works for more than ten hours but remains in the bracket of working poor, as 1.2 billion workers globally can earn less than one dollar and fifty cents. They are compelled to live in extreme poverty. Seventy-five per cent workers have no social protection while 168 million children are out of school due to poverty of their parents. One billion people have no access to adequate drinking water and 2.6 billion people lack proper sanitation. Of the 865 million women worldwide who have potential to contribute fully to their respective economies, 812 million live in emerging and developing countries.
In Bangladesh, garment workers, 85 per cent of whom are women, are deprived of their rights to trade unions, maternity leave, health care, housing and transportation. Wages here are the lowest in the world. Adequate scopes and access to quality education as well as technical and vocational training, which are preconditions for decent and sustainable jobs, are not available for 90 per cent of youths. The government and its relevant agencies working in the field of skill development failed to anticipate the necessity of skill. Resultantly a job mismatch arose eroding productivity and the potential of youths. It is unfortunate that all successive governments miserably failed to address the intolerable woes of migrant workers who do substandard jobs in their destination countries abroad. The earnings of our migrant workers could have been at least doubled if the migrant workers were skilled. At present the global labour market needs skilled workers.
However, not only adult workers, child labourers in a large number also work long hours in hazardous working conditions, which are defiantly below the sub-standard level, in exchange for a very low wage. The labour in Bangladesh is the cheapest in the world. Their income is less than 2 US dollars a day. Their income is not at all secure, even if they are permanent workers.
Due to the changed economic order largely attributed to international financial institutions, the pattern of work has changed rapidly. In Bangladesh at present 70 per cent workers are engaged in precarious work. They are not permanent workers. They work on the basis of 'no work no pay.' They also work on the part-time or daily basis. And they do not get any leave, overtime benefit or any fringe benefit as per the labour law. Outsourcing, contract and sub-contract jobs dominate the formal sector, let alone the non-formal sector, which constitutes 87.5 per cent of the workforce in the country. They face untold sufferings. Workers do not get any pension. There is no unemployment benefit. Dismissed workers go home empty-handed. Their income is not secure and they have no social protection also.
Why does such a situation like that exist here? Employers were never so powerful in the history of mankind. The powerful and wealthy people are always ruthless. They never care about anyone. They never care about the interest of the people. They are always driven by self-interest, profiteering motive and the greed for money. But the history says an economy based on greed, unlimited profits, cheating and exploitation cannot last long. We need to change this situation. Through solidarity, unity and united global action we can change this world. An alternative economic order should be established to ensure sustainable jobs, secure incomes and social protection. And this is possible. Let us promise to make it happen.
The writer is General Secretary of Bangladesh Mukto Sramik Federation. This piece was presented in the ITUC 3rd World Congress held in Berlin, Germany in May, 2014
