Three years after the Rana Plaza tragedy, the horror, emanating from massive deaths and destructions, is still haunting the survivors. About three fifths of them continue to suffer from serious physical and psychological after-effects. Around half of them, according to reports, are still unemployed and less than one in 20 aspire to return to work in the garment industry. For Bangladesh, the anniversary of the worst-ever incident is a reminder of the need to redouble its efforts to build a better future for the millions of people who work in, or are dependent on, the ready-made garments (RMG) sector. Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB), in its recent study on Rana Plaza tragedy, observed that the pace of the trial of people responsible for the Rana Plaza collapse was sluggish. It recommended that the trials should be held under the Speedy Trial Tribunal to ensure speedy dispensation of justice. Building a safer, more sustainable garment industry is deemed to be the best and most lasting memorial to those who had suffered and perished at Rana Plaza. To reach such a goal, all stake-holders in the global garment chain need to stay focused on co-operative efforts to raise safety standards at the workplaces. On the other hand, the stake-holders’ collaboration is vital to help build the long-term partnerships needed to help grow the country’s garment manufacturing sector as a safe and sustainable industry. The safety initiatives taken by the stake-holders and the efforts made by the government and various international brands demonstrate how widespread co-operation can help bring about a significant change in the industry. There is no denying that the workplace safety has improved since the disaster. Key steps such as the inspection of virtually all export-oriented garment factories for structural, fire and electrical safety, were taken. In all, 3,632 factories were inspected by the International Labour Organisation (ILO). To date, 39 have been closed and a similar number partially shut down, potentially saving the lives of many thousands of workers. With the help of brands and buyers and under the leadership of the ILO, a global trust fund has already been created to provide the Rana Plaza victims with compensations. More than $19 million has been raised for such purpose. Until now, $18 million was disbursed among 3,000 beneficiaries, according to reports. More money awaits disbursements to the victims. Investing more in long-term orders and building closer relationships with well-performing producers, hold the key to improving the sector’s cash flow and securing new funds to keep upgrading standards. Despite facing many odds, the local garment industry is growing and reaching out to new markets. This is encouraging to note that leading manufacturers and the Bangladesh Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) are now taking initiatives for building better factories and investing more in research and development (R&D) to enhance productivity in the apparel industry. However, much more efforts should be taken to ensure that the benefits of improved conditions and better safety standards reach across all the tiers of the supply chain. The short lead times, low margins and a large amount of sub-contracting make it imperative that all stake-holders work closely to identify and close off loopholes that make it possible to breach or ignore proper codes of conduct, according to apparel experts. Meantime, the government has to do more to fully enforce safety standards and labour laws. It also needs to put the national focus on enhancing labour rights and developing better workplace insurance systems. This can help improve working conditions in the factories and increase the buyers’ attraction to the Bangladeshi goods. It may also strengthen the industry’s case for securing a fairer deal from importing nations. Although Bangladesh is now the second biggest RMG supplier to the US market after China, it is disconcerting to note that the importers of the Bangladesh apparel items there have to pay over $800m now in tariffs to the US government – a burden that is ultimately shifted to the buyers at the retail outlets. Tariff rates at 15% are applied to Bangladeshi RMG imports, the second highest in this sector. Many observers term it highly discriminatory, as it is higher than nearly all other developing countries. In the country’s garment sector, there remains a widespread distrust about trade unions among the stakeholders including the owners. Such negative perceptions, as analysts believe, pose barriers to the formation of new unions, also making effective operational activities difficult in many cases for the existing labour unions. The trade union registration process should be considered a formality, though it has to be carried out in accordance with a set of objective and transparent criteria. However, it is worthwhile to note that the reforms, being undertaken by the government with the support of the ILO, do not simply aim at bringing about a change. These are also purported to institutionalise the change, so that once external support ends, local stakeholders such as the government, employers and workers’ organisations can sustain and build upon the work, undertaken so far. What is important now is to complete remediation as a matter of priority. The buyers and brands sourcing from these factories need to engage themselves in a process of partnership. This will enable the RMG units to complete remediation. The issue of remediation has, therefore, to be handled with a sense of urgency to address the residual risks in the sector. In this context, the reminder served by the Rana Plaza anniversary, is expected to boost ongoing efforts to aid, rehabilitate and provide solidarity to all survivors and the families of the bereaved.
