Researsh & Study
The leather sector of Bangladesh, which constitutes about 3 percent of the world’s market for leather and leather goods, is the country’s third-largest source of export earnings. The tanneries are located in five districts of Bangladesh: Dhaka, Gazipur, Jessore, Khulna, and Chattogram. The largest number of tanneries are located at the Tannery Industrial Estate (TIE) in Hemayetpur, Savar. Though occupational safety and health have improved in TIE compared to Hazaribagh, the workers still face many difficulties and overall dissatisfaction.The government of Bangladesh relocated the tannery factories from Hazaribagh to the tannery estate in Savar, which was planned to be equipped with facilities such as a Central Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP), a central dumping yard, a water treatment plant, a Sludge Power Generation System (SPGS), a Common Chrome Recovery Unit (CCRU), and a sewage treatment plant. Despite the high promise of a planned relocation project, the tannery estate in Savar has yet to achieve the major relocation objectives, such as environmental compliance, due to the CETP—the centerpiece of the whole relocation endeavor—proving unsuitable for the tanning factories. As a result, without a functional CETP
Objective: The study broadly investigates working conditions in tanneries and leather industries, the socio-economic conditions of tannery workers, and the implementation status of labour laws in the existing tannery industry.
Methodology: This study conducted both qualitative and quantitative methods with male and female respondents in Savar (inside and outside of the Tannery Industrial Estate).
Findings: Most of the workers in the tanning industry belong to the age group between 18 and 35 years and live in rented houses, whereas a few get factory residences. The formal contract scenario in factories is very poor. Besides, the majority of the workers do not have any ID cards and joined the sector without any training.
There is no child labour in this sector. The unionized tanneries have adequate lighting and ventilation systems, but the non-unionized tanneries do not. Fire safety is very poor in these factories, and there is a lack of a proper emergency exit system in non-unionized factories. The workers of unionized tanneries work 48 hours a week. In contrast, the workers of non-unionized tanneries have to work far more hours a week. In some cases, the overtime is not voluntary—it is forced. Only a small percentage of the workers have a provident fund facility. Most of the workers do not know about the minimum wages. Monthly wages vary between unionized and non-unionized as well as male and female workers. Sick leave is mostly unpaid. There is a variation in skin disease, shortness of breath, and stomach ailments by working years in this sector. Though the majority of workers in the unionized tanneries positively describe the importance of the union, the authority does not allow them to form workers’ unions.
Recommendations:
- Employers must respect the rights of workers and provide a safe and healthy workplace. Additionally, employers need to train new workers if the job involves working with toxic chemicals or other materials such as machinery that might potentially cause workplace hazards.
- Employment in the tannery factories must be formalized by requiring employers to offer workers a written and signed contract citing the duties and responsibilities as well as compensation and employee benefits. Formalization of employment is central to eliminating the current sweatshop conditions and ensuring decent pay with improved labour standards in the tannery industry.
- Workers need to be aware of their rights and protest incidents of labour violations through legitimate collective actions, i.e., union activism. They must exercise democratic practices in union organizing, which are critical to the effective functioning of trade unions on the one hand and preventing the politicization of union activism on the other.
