Swedish Deputy Minister for Employment Irene Wennemo has urged Bangladesh to train up mid-level workers especially in the country’s RMG sector to ensure workers’ rights and enhance their skills. The visiting minister made the call at a meeting with his Bangladeshi counterpart Md Mujibul Haque Chunnu, state minister for Labour and Employment, at his office yesterday. Irene came Dhaka to participate in the Bangladesh Development Forum 2015 held yesterday at Bangabandhu International Conference Center (BICC) in the capital. During her meeting, she wanted to know about the recent development and progress made in the country’s RMG sector particularly about workplace safety and workers’ rights after the Rana Plaza building collapse that raised question about safety, a meeting source told the Dhaka Tribune, wishing anonymity. The minister also wanted to know whether the workers are allowed to form trade unions and practice unionism in Export Processing Zones, he said. In response, Mujibul Haque Chunnu said: “The government is working to ensure workers’ rights and develop their living standard.” Currently, in all the industries including the ready-made garment sector, the largest employment sector, workers are allowed to form trade union if they fulfill the criteria as per the law of the land, he said. Commenting on the safety issues, the junior minister said all factories have been brought under the inspection net and the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh, Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety and ILO had provided support for inspection to assess the safety standard. Chunnu informed his Swedish counterpart that the inspection has been completed by the global retailers platform in association with the national initiative, which found less than 2% factory risky. Urging the Swedish minister to provide cooperation for workers’ training, he said the government is providing different types of training to enhance workers’ skills through International Labour Organisation and other development partners. Senior Secretary Labour and Employment Mikail Shipar and Swedish Ambassador to Bangladesh Johan Frisell were present during the meeting. According to Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), in the fiscal year 2014-15, Bangladesh’s export to Sweden stood at $460m with an over 9% rise.
