There’s no doubt that the coronavirus pandemic had a devastating impact on the lives of garment workers who have had to deal with economic hardships on account of the same even as according to figures from the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), around 317 factories were shut during the first wave of COVID-19 as a result of which about 70,000 workers were laid off initially whilst as per the union leaders, more than two lakh apparel workers have allegedly lost their jobs during the pandemic. However, under the Social Protection Programme for Unemployed and Distressed Workers in Export Oriented RMG, Leather Goods and Footwear Industries, the Ministry of Labour and Employment have started providing protection allowances to the workers affected by the pandemic in December 2020 even as the ministry concerned has, reportedly, received a list of almost 20,000 workers, of which only 6,032 could be verified as the rest of the NID numbers were invalid. Consequently, around 6,032 workers so far have received the protection allowance of Taka 52,500,000 in three phases in the month of September, October and November of 2020 while a list of around 5,000 workers is pending, which, reportedly, needs to be updated by the factory owners, the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) and the BGMEA. Media reports claimed this citing Director of the Department of Labour, Abu Ashrif Mahmud, while going on to add that consequent to a significant number of workers being laid off initially, the factory owners are having a hard time to find information about them as a result of which the ministry is not able to proceed without the updated information.
