May Day and our garment workers
It is not long that we have observed the May Day with numerous seminars stressing the right of the workers. Members of our self-styled 'civil society' and leaders of different trade bodies have delivered passionately their well-written speeches. But the situation on the ground was revealed by yet another tragic stampede in a garment factory.
The safety measures in most of the garment factories are inadequate and the workers are not trained how to tackle the emergency situations. The cheap labour force contributing to the highest forex-earning sector seems cheap indeed. Over the last 14 years, around 300 workers were killed and about 1500 injured in 35 accidents in garment factories in the capital.
How many more life does the authorities concerned need to change the situation?
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