LABOUR MARKET PROFILE BANGLADESH - 2020 Danish Trade Union Development Agency, Analytical Unit The profile provides an overview of the labour market’s structures, development, and challenges. Danish Trade Union Development Agency Bangladesh Labour Market Profile 2020 PREFACE Danish Trade Union Development Agency (DTDA) is the Main sources of data and information for LMPs are: development organisation of the Danish trade union movement. It was established in 1987 by the two largest • As part of programme implementation and Danish confederations – Danish Federation of Trade monitoring, national partner organisations provide Unions (Danish acronym: LO) and Danish Confederation annual narrative progress reports, including of Professionals (Danish acronym: FTF). These two information on labour market developments. organisations merged to become the Danish Trade Union Furthermore, specific types of data and information Confederation (Danish acronym: FH) in January 2019. relating to key indicators are collected using a The name of this organisation, former known as the unique data collection tool. LO/FTF Council, was changed to DTDA. • National statistical institutions and international The work of DTDA is in line with the International Labour databanks are used as source for collection of Organization’s (ILO) Decent Work Agenda (DWA) with general (statistical) data and information. This the four Decent Work Pillars: Creating decent jobs, includes the ILOSTAT and NATLEX, World Bank guaranteeing rights at work, extending social protection Open Data, ITUC Survey of violations of Trade and promoting social dialogue. The overall development Union Rights, the U.S. Department of State as well objective of DTDA’s interventions in the South is to as other labour related global indexes. eradicate poverty and support the development of just and democratic societies by furthering the DWA. • Academia and media sources (e.g. LabourStart, national news, etc.) are also used in the general DTDA works in partnership collaboration with trade union research on labour market issues. organisations in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. The immediate objective of the programme Labour Market Profiles for more than 30 countries are collaboration is to assist the partner organisations in available on the DTDA website. becoming change agents in their own national and regional labour market context, capable of achieving The frontpage’s picture is taken by Tina Møller Kristensen tangible improvements in the national DWA conditions in 2011 displaying ship breaking activity in Bangladesh. and towards the achievement of the labour-related s). Sustainable Development Goals’ (SDG The DTDA’s Analytical Unit in Copenhagen prepared this report with support from our Sub-Regional Office in The The format of the Labour Market Profile (LMP) provides Philippines. Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS) an overview of the labour market situation in the contributed with updated data on trade union individual countries of engagement. LMP aims at giving membership and other essential information. The profile a comprehensive view of structures, developments and was first published in June 2020, not to mention minor challenges in the labour market. The document is divided additional inputs were aggregated in July 2020. into eleven thematic sections describing trade unions, employers’ organisations, government, bi-/tripartite Should you have questions about the profile, you can institutions and social dialogue, national labour contact Kasper Andersen ([email protected]), Manager of legislation, violations of trade union rights, working the Analytical Unit. conditions, status of the workforce, education, social protection and economy. Address: Ulandssekretariatet In the framework of DWA and SDGs, LMPs are reporting Islands Brygge 32D on several key indicators addressing several aspects of DK-2300 Copenhagen S labour market development, especially the trade union Denmark membership evolution, social dialogue and bi-/tri-partite Telefon: +45 33 73 74 40 mechanisms, policy development and legal reforms, www.ulandssekretariatet.dk status vis-à-vis ILO conventions and labour standards, among others. Page i Danish Trade Union Development Agency Bangladesh Labour Market Profile 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY xtreme working poor among employed in Bangladesh systematically are dismissed. On the positive side, the E has dropped drastically over the last two decades. The impact of the Labour Act reform supported a rise of 31% country is one of the fastest-growing economies in Asia. The in basic unions’ membership from 2012 to 2019; the total growth has been driven by export-oriented trade union density of employees reached 11% in 2019. industrialisation, particularly in Ready-Made Garments (RMG) Industry as well as ship breaking and fishing. Initially, the unemployment rate was projected at 4.3% in Relatively low labour productivity is connected to low- 2020. This rate is expected to rise because of the productive and low-income service jobs. RMG wage hike in Coronavirus pandemic, especially in the RMG sector where 2019 was lower than the aggregate inflation rate and many factory owners face financial ruin, and the tourism GDP per capita growth. The global Coronavirus pandemic sector thumped by travel flow uncertainties. The livelihoods walloped the economy at the beginning of 2020 triggering of hundreds of thousands of workers hang in the balance. a stimulus package for the export-oriented sector that left Since unemployment insurance is notably missing, most get out the most vulnerable sectors. pushed to generate some income to survive in the informal economy. The industrial relations’ landscape was evolving in the aftermath of the Rana Plaza collapse in 2013. It was Changes happened in the employment structure during the supported by pressure from international stakeholders. last two decades: the agricultural sector share dropped Central labour legislation has introduced several and enrolled in the service and industry sectors. Employees improvements in recent years, mainly a higher attendance and employers’ segments are evolving. Still, more than half to industries’ occupational safety on the factory-level. (55%) of the employment are in ‘vulnerable’ employment. There are observations on labour legislation to Although women’s participation rate increases and international standards and the scope of implementing superseding the South Asia average, they are less regulations in practice, though. privileged than men in the labour market. As an example, youth not in employment, education or training rate (NEET Despite several existing tripartite bodies, only a few are rate) represents a gender gap of 33 percentage points. reaching results. Social dialogue remains fragile. Some Almost every tenth child is working, mostly in agriculture. In improvements are registered, such as forming the 2018, the Bangladesh Labour Act was amended, banning permanent 20-member tripartite council for RMG sector in all child labour in factories, and only allowing children age 2017. Application of Collective Bargaining Agreements 14-18 to engage in light work. School enrolment on higher (CBAs) is relatively new, and their functionality is marred levels was progressing during the 2010s, not to mention by dissatisfaction. There have been many conflicts between concerns are emerging in quality of education and high employers and the organised workers, and trade union dropout rates at the secondary level. rights violations are rampant. Labour courts have a substantial backlog of more than 17,000 cases, and Social security is mandatory by the constitution, but few alternative dispute resolution other than the court has no schemes are available and sidestep informal workers. It is substitute. Recent reform has put pressure on the Labour reflected in the fact that just 28% of the population Court to dispose of cases more expeditiously. receives at least one social protection benefit, and 43% is covered by health social protection. Close to nine out of ten enterprises are micro-enterprises and not required to apply Participation Committee Migrating workers play a part of the national economy, requirements. Business regulations are rigid. Generally, e.g. dependency on personal remittance hovering close to nine out of ten workers operate in the informal significantly above the Foreign Direct Investments’ (FDI) economy who loophole labour regulations. Working GDP share. As of March 2020, at least 859,000 Rohingya conditions are harsh. Employers consider cooperation in refugees are stuck in Bangladesh’s crowded camps. This labour-employer relations at a low-medium level. vulnerable refugee group is barred from jobs, and local Circumstances are challenging unionism, e.g. union-busting communities are becoming impatient as local prices on is frequent, and workers attempting to form a union often markets increase. Page ii Danish Trade Union Development Agency Bangladesh Labour Market Profile 2020 The table below provide an overview of key indicators that On next page, page iv, the table presents an overview of follow the Decent Work Agenda. The selected indicators the current value of Sustainability Development Goals are concentrated on areas where the trade union indicators and targets for labour market issues. movement has a central role in the labour market. Status of key labour market indicators in the framework of the Decent Work Agenda (DWA) in Bangladesh, 2019 Creating decent jobs Policy reforms addressing