The US and Bangladesh have agreed to initiate talks on workers’ rights and safety in the South Asian country, months after the collapse of a commercial building in Dhaka in April that killed 1,129 people in one of the world’s worst industrial disasters. An agreement in this regard was reached following the meeting between Trade Representative Michael Froman and Bangladesh ambassador to the US Akramul Qader. “No workers should have to sacrifice their safety or their basic rights in order to secure a livelihood for themselves and their families,” Froman said after the meeting. “We look forward to renewed and sustained engagement with the Government of Bangladesh and other stakeholders to strengthen worker rights and safety through implementation of the Action Plan and through our co-ordinated efforts with the European Union and the International Labour Organisation on the recently announced Sustainability Compact,” Froman said. Officials from USTR and the Departments of Labour and State will discuss with Bangladeshi officials implementation of an Action Plan, which was released on July 19. Implementation of the actions outlined in the Plan could provide a basis for the US President to consider reinstatement of the Generalised System of Preferences trade benefits for Bangladesh, which were suspended in June 2013. The suspension becomes effective on September 3. The plan provides a list of measures related to fire and building safety, as well as worker rights in the garment industry, export processing zones, and shrimp sector, which the US Government encourages Bangladesh to take in order to address worker rights and safety issues. During the meeting, Froman discussed with Qader new developments on worker rights in Bangladesh, including recent labour law reform, and emphasised the importance of following through with concrete actions that would address broad concerns related to the ability of workers to exercise their fundamental rights and to work in safe workplaces. On Thursday Bangladesh defended its new labour laws, and said it was angry at criticism from the International Labour Organisation (ILO) which called the legislation inadequate. Parliament passed the legislation last week in the wake of a garment factory disaster in April that killed 1,129 people, highlighting poor safety standards in the industry. Lawmakers said the new law ensured full trade union rights” formns of labourers, as it scrapped previous provisions requiring factory owners to approve the formation of a union. In a statement issued on Monday, however, the ILO said that the law fell short of “several important steps called for” by the organisation, notably related to restrictions on workers’ freedom of association. The law stipulates that workers can only form a union if 30% of employees approve of it in advance. “We’ve protested,” Labour Minister Rajiuddin Ahmed Raju said. “It’s not acceptable. We’re writing a letter seeking explanation as to why this kind of statement was issued.” Bangladesh, the world’s second largest garment exporter, has been under intense international pressure to overhaul labour laws since the April 24 tragedy, one of the world’s worst industrial disasters. The garment industry, which relies on cheap labour to keep itself competitive, is the mainstay of the economy, making up 40% of its industrial workforce and 80% of its $25bn annual exports. gulf-times/bangladesh/245/details/360856/us-and-bangladesh-agree-to-hold-talks-on-workers%E2%80%99-rights
Posted on: Sat, 27 Jul 2013 19:39:25 +0000
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