Local apparel makers and labour leaders in their separate meetings with the visiting delegation of European Parliament (EP) urged its members to take steps for continuing Bangladesh’s GSP benefit in the EU markets, meeting sources said. They made the appeal to the delegation in the wake of the European Commission’s warning of temporary withdrawal of Bangladesh’s generalized system of preferences (GSP) facilities over ‘serious labour rights violation’ in the country’s ready-made garment (RMG) sector. The four-member team of Members of European Parliament (MEPs) comprised Arne Lietz, S & D Co-rapporteur on Garment Report, Linda McAvan, EP Chair of Development Committee, Nobert Neuser, S & D Development Coordinator, and Agnes Jongerius, S & D INTA. During the first day of the delegation’s three-day visit, the members held meetings with International Labour Organization (ILO) officials, labour activists, and leaders of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) in the capital. The delegation, however, stressed on same standards of law in factories in the Export Processing Zones (EPZs) and outside the zones along with amending Bangladesh Labour Act to ensure freedom of association and collective bargaining. In the meetings both the labour leaders and factory owners said they would work together with EU to improve the standards of labour rights in the country. The meetings also discussed issued like restructuring the minimum wages board for RMG workers, removing inequalities between public and private sectors regarding maternity leave, and withdrawal of cases filed against the workers of Ashulia factories who demanded wage hike. “We welcomed the delegation for monitoring labour rights situation in Bangladesh. We urged them to continue Bangladesh’s GSP and also ensure transparency in RMG supply chain,” Nazma Akter, president of Bangladesh Combined Garment Workers Federation, told the FE after their meeting. The factory owners, however, opposed the proposal for withdrawal of 30 per cent workers’ representation for trade union registration. They said they would not agree with the proposal, even if their units get shut, one of the BGMEA leaders told the FE. “There is an urgent need of sustaining the business, not only for us, but for the sake of the country and the 4.4 million workers employed in the sector,” BGMEA President Siddiqur Rahman said at a press briefing, held in the city after their meeting. Terming the delegation a ‘fact-finding mission’, Mr Arne Lietz at the briefing said, “We have to ensure the same standards, otherwise its does not make sense to build up standards on one side. It is all about the citizens, who should have the same rights. They should have equal rights in all fields – in trade union, education and gender equality.”
