Garment workers’ leaders on Monday asked the government and the factory owners to ensure workplace safety for the workers. At a human chain, they also said the owners were yet to take adequate measures to ensure workplace safety even after repeated tragic incidents like Rana Plaza, Tazreen Fashion and Spectram Garments incidents. Bangladesh Progressive Garments Workers Federation formed the human chain in front of National Press Club to mark 11 years of Spectrum tragedy. On April 11, 2005, the nine-storey factory building of Spectrum Garments at Palashbari of Savar collapsed, killing around 70 people and injuring at least a hundred. Razia Begum, president of the federation, said that the collapse of Spectrum building was the first major accident in the garment sector. ‘But the factory owner is yet to be punished even 11 years after the incident,’ Razia said.Bangladesh Sramik Federation general secretary Foyez Hossain said the owners were not interested to build their factories maintaining the building codes which resulted in deadly accidents. Quamrunnahar Brgum, general secretary of the BPGWF, said that number of deadly accidents in garment factories was increasing day by day as the owners continued to ignore the security issue. Mozaffar Hossain, who was a worker of Spectrum Garments, said the victims were yet to be compensated. ‘If the owner was punished, Rana Plaza accident would never have happened,’ said Mozaffar, who lost a leg in the incident and was leading a miserable life. Another victim Nur-e-Alam, who also lost a hand in the incident, said for his disability his factory owner was responsible but the government was yet to make him face trial.‘I have not got justice for my disability,’ he said, crying.
