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US calls on Bangladesh to ensure labour rights in EPZs

  • Bizbd Report
  • Update Time : 10:47:01 pm, Wednesday, 15 January 2025
  • 110

The United States has urged Bangladesh to reform its labour laws to extend the rights of freedom of association and collective bargaining to workers in export processing zones and special economic zones.

It has also pressed for the easing of trade union registration requirements for workers and for a fair and transparent minimum wage process for garment workers.

The United States has recognised Bangladesh as one of its top apparel suppliers in Asia, despite the country’s relatively weaker labour standards and environmental protections.

‘Despite the progress on worker safety standards in the last decade, the US continues to urge Bangladesh to align its domestic labour laws with international labour standards,’ according to the USTR policy paper series on supply chain resilience.

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) released ‘Adapting Trade Policy for Supply Chain Resilience: Responding to Today’s Global Economic Challenges’ on January 7.

This series of six policy papers focuses on trade and investment policy initiatives to promote supply chain resilience.

In 2023, US imports of apparel from Bangladesh amounted to $7.1 billion, according to the data.

The policy papers highlighted that weaker labour standards and environmental protections in countries such as China, India, Vietnam, Bangladesh and Indonesia, along with the lower prices of imports from these countries relative to goods manufactured by US and global firms, undermine the ability of US workers and industries to compete fairly.

Nonexistent, weak, or ineffective labour and environmental protections, as well as violations of labour rights, contribute to artificially low production costs and constitute unfair and anti-competitive nonmarket policies and practices, the report stated.

Violations of social and environmental sustainability measures also pose serious reputational risks to companies operating in the textile and apparel sector, the report added.

It cited safety hazards in factories in these countries, which have led to worker deaths, including the 2013 Rana Plaza building collapse in Dhaka that killed over 1,000 workers.

The report further noted that women, who constitute an estimated 80 per cent of garment workers globally, often face gender discrimination, physical abuse, and sexual harassment due to a lack of respect for basic labour rights in garment factories in these countries.

The report emphasised the need to address issues related to violence against and harassment of workers, unfair labour practices, freedom of association, collective bargaining, and the establishment of a fair and transparent minimum wage process for garment workers.

It noted that the USTR and interagency partners have regularly engaged with the Bangladeshi government on these issues.

‘The United States called for Bangladesh to reform its labour laws to extend the rights of freedom of association and collective bargaining to the export processing zones and special economic zones and to ease the trade union registration requirements for workers,’ it stated.

The USTR also engaged with stakeholders such as trade associations, NGOs, apparel brands, trade union leaders, and workers to increase support for improvements in worker rights in Bangladesh.

The textile and apparel industries account for an estimated 10 per cent of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

These industries also contribute significantly to water pollution, primarily due to agrochemical runoff from natural fibre crop production, effluent discharge from manufacturing facilities, and the use of ‘fast fashion’ synthetic fabrics that shed microplastics with each wash.

In December 2024, the USTR initiated its first investigation under Section 301 to examine acts, policies, and practices that may violate labour rights and human rights.

The policy papers addressed a range of topics, including a trade policy framework for supply chain resilience; challenges and opportunities for advancing resilience in the US textile and apparel industries; the use of rules of origin to promote resilience; how more effective responses to non-market policies and practices build resilience; data and analytics for developing resilience-oriented trade policy and sectoral trade agreements for enhancing resilience.

US calls on Bangladesh to ensure labour rights in EPZs

Update Time : 10:47:01 pm, Wednesday, 15 January 2025

The United States has urged Bangladesh to reform its labour laws to extend the rights of freedom of association and collective bargaining to workers in export processing zones and special economic zones.

It has also pressed for the easing of trade union registration requirements for workers and for a fair and transparent minimum wage process for garment workers.

The United States has recognised Bangladesh as one of its top apparel suppliers in Asia, despite the country’s relatively weaker labour standards and environmental protections.

‘Despite the progress on worker safety standards in the last decade, the US continues to urge Bangladesh to align its domestic labour laws with international labour standards,’ according to the USTR policy paper series on supply chain resilience.

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) released ‘Adapting Trade Policy for Supply Chain Resilience: Responding to Today’s Global Economic Challenges’ on January 7.

This series of six policy papers focuses on trade and investment policy initiatives to promote supply chain resilience.

In 2023, US imports of apparel from Bangladesh amounted to $7.1 billion, according to the data.

The policy papers highlighted that weaker labour standards and environmental protections in countries such as China, India, Vietnam, Bangladesh and Indonesia, along with the lower prices of imports from these countries relative to goods manufactured by US and global firms, undermine the ability of US workers and industries to compete fairly.

Nonexistent, weak, or ineffective labour and environmental protections, as well as violations of labour rights, contribute to artificially low production costs and constitute unfair and anti-competitive nonmarket policies and practices, the report stated.

Violations of social and environmental sustainability measures also pose serious reputational risks to companies operating in the textile and apparel sector, the report added.

It cited safety hazards in factories in these countries, which have led to worker deaths, including the 2013 Rana Plaza building collapse in Dhaka that killed over 1,000 workers.

The report further noted that women, who constitute an estimated 80 per cent of garment workers globally, often face gender discrimination, physical abuse, and sexual harassment due to a lack of respect for basic labour rights in garment factories in these countries.

The report emphasised the need to address issues related to violence against and harassment of workers, unfair labour practices, freedom of association, collective bargaining, and the establishment of a fair and transparent minimum wage process for garment workers.

It noted that the USTR and interagency partners have regularly engaged with the Bangladeshi government on these issues.

‘The United States called for Bangladesh to reform its labour laws to extend the rights of freedom of association and collective bargaining to the export processing zones and special economic zones and to ease the trade union registration requirements for workers,’ it stated.

The USTR also engaged with stakeholders such as trade associations, NGOs, apparel brands, trade union leaders, and workers to increase support for improvements in worker rights in Bangladesh.

The textile and apparel industries account for an estimated 10 per cent of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

These industries also contribute significantly to water pollution, primarily due to agrochemical runoff from natural fibre crop production, effluent discharge from manufacturing facilities, and the use of ‘fast fashion’ synthetic fabrics that shed microplastics with each wash.

In December 2024, the USTR initiated its first investigation under Section 301 to examine acts, policies, and practices that may violate labour rights and human rights.

The policy papers addressed a range of topics, including a trade policy framework for supply chain resilience; challenges and opportunities for advancing resilience in the US textile and apparel industries; the use of rules of origin to promote resilience; how more effective responses to non-market policies and practices build resilience; data and analytics for developing resilience-oriented trade policy and sectoral trade agreements for enhancing resilience.