Labor Rights

The number of people in Bangladesh with low paying jobs is quite high and such jobs require them in most instances to risk their lives on a daily basis. The unsafe work environment, inadequate tools for the workers and lack of safety precautions are only some of the reasons why the country has such a high death rate of workers who succumb to injuries or accidents faced during work. The major incidents such as Rana Plaza can be considered as the violation of labor rights. Therefore, industrial activities needs to be monitored and labors should be provided legal and social assistance for establishing their rights. The new amended labor law incorporates provisions including forming trade unions without informing owners and safeguarding safety measures for employees in their workplaces. Provision of safety committees and the establishment of workplace health centers are also included in the law. Inspection is an integral part of the law. According to the law, inspectors can enter any factory to measure compliance with the law, and can apply penalties for breaches of the law (Amended Labor Law 2013). JWF wishes to promote, for such exploited individuals, the right to unionize. This wing of JWF believes in equitable development through social and economic well-being of labor, migrants, and women workers and through cultural renewal among disenfranchised people. The lack of proper safety equipment and the low wages don not amount the lives lost in such dangerous situations. JWF has already worked on a Public Interest Litigation preventing the use of unregistered & unsafe boilers used in garments which have a high likelihood of exploding. Moreover, JWF also worked to accommodate the victims’ families in such situations with proper financial remedy in order for them to pick themselves up.

JWF has already worked for the betterment of the labors of Bangladesh through a public Litigation case that involved the death of workers at a garments factory due a blast of expired dated boiler and had been under heavy criticism by all the journalists and news groups at that time. On 19.07.17 JWF filed a Public Interest Litigation (being writ petition no. 9644 of 2017) relating to preventing the use of unregistered & unsafe boilers used in garments which have a high likelihood of exploding. In a Garment’s factory at Kashimpur, Jaydebpur on July 4, 13 workers were killed in the boiler explosion which left many others injured. Garments being always jam-packed with workers working about can be quite a dangerous place should such outdated equipment be placed there. Alongside prevention of use of such boilers, JWF also sought a directive on the government for prosecution and punishment of the offenders responsible for the deaths and injuries of the workers at the boiler blast. Moreover, JWF also worked to accommodate the victims’ families in such situations with proper financial remedy in order for them to pick themselves up. This public interest litigation can be seen as quite the feat for protecting the hard working individuals involved in the garment’s factory, not only the ones from the present day ones but also the future. We also try to raise awareness of lacking safety equipment for dangerous works which we hope will at least bring a slight sliver of hope for a better future of these workers.