The new government and garment workers’ movement

Dr. A J M Shafiul Alam Bhuiyan writes for DOT : 
Gratitude to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for her timely intervention to fix the pay raise fiasco of the Garment workers who have been on the street for the last few days demanding the elimination of disparity related to pay raise. A joint meeting of the representatives of the government, garment factory owners and garment workers have declared a new pay structure, raising the salary of the workers belonging to six grades. Hope this declaration will take the workers back to work.
Several months ago, a government committee to fix the minimum wage for the garments sector came to a consensus to determine the minimum wage at TK 8,000 from TK 5,300 after many parleys. The workers wanted way more than this while the owners were united to keep the raise as low as possible. The workers were supposed to get the raised salary from the last December. According to media reports, some garment factories paid the new minimum wage to entry-level workers while did not raise the salary of the senior workers although it is a matter of common sense that when minimum wage goes up the wages of the upper-level workers will go up proportionately. Some factories even did not implement the new minimum wage. As a consequence, the workers took to the streets which coincided with the oath-taking of the new cabinet.
This coincidence could be interpreted in two ways. First, it may be viewed as a conspiracy to undermine the new government. Some people conspired to push the workers to the street on the very first moment of the new cabinet to demonstrate to the world that there is instability in the garments sector and the government is under a challenge from the workers. It could be interpreted as a tacit negative message to the buyers and investors who look for a stable and peaceful environment for investment to ensuring the return. Second, the workers marched down the streets because they felt betrayed by the owners and they chose the occasion to attract the attention of the new cabinet. Both the first and second hypotheses may be true in the context of Bangladesh. While it is important to find out whether anybody is hatching conspiracies, it is more important to ascertain whether the grudge which pushed the workers to the street is legitimate or not. Sheikh Hasina felt right that the grudge of the workers was legitimate and instructed to solve the problem.
The garment sector has turned out to be the most important sector for the country for earning foreign exchange. Bangladesh is the second largest exporter of readymade garments after China in the world. There will be rivalries and even conspiracies to undermine Bangladesh’s success. If this sector turns volatile both the owners and workers will lose: the owners will lose their capital along with profit while the workers will lose their jobs. Therefore, both parties have to work in tandem to maintain a congenial work environment to sustain and accelerate the growth of the garments sector. Since the owners are the most powerful stakeholder, they need to be proactive. History suggests that any coercive means applied to suppress the resistance of the marginal people backfires. Instead, persuasive means achieve a long-lasting solution.
The garment factory owners can learn from Henry Ford, the founder of the Ford Motor Company, and the pioneer of welfare capitalism. In 1914, Ford raised the minimum daily pay of the workers from $2.34 to $5 in his automobile factory in Detroit, Michigan and later introduced the five-day 40 workhour weeks with a view to attract good quality workers and increase productivity. However, initially, Ford was against workers forming unions in his factories but had to budge on this when continuous workers’ movement was about to destroy his family business. Eventually, the Ford motor company housed one of the largest autoworkers’ unions in the US. Ford realized that the management and the workers need to work collectively to foster productivity and sustainability of a company.
For a sustained growth of the garments industry in Bangladesh, the owners and the workers have to work in unison. Full implementation of the new pay structure at every garments factory can usher in peace and stability. The workers deserve decent pay and leisure time for their hard work.
The writer is Professor and Founder Chair of the Department of Television, Film, and Photography and Executive Director, Governance and Policy Research Foundation (GPRF), an independent think tank.