Tale of Union-Busting Highlights Labor Challenges in Bangladesh

Mayu Saini
·5 min read

Finding the middle path is never easy.

But Mondal Fashions Ltd., a manufacturer located in Tongabari, Ashulia, a Dhaka suburb, and its workers have overcome months of seemingly insurmountable mistrust and friction to forge an agreement brokered through trade unions and the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).

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There was a lot at stake.

Mondal was accused of anti-trade union practices as union leaders filed written complaints of harassment, physical abuse and the dismissal of workers.

Matters came to a head in August in the aftermath of a letter written by the Sommilito Garments Sramik Federation (SGSF) to BGMEA, the Department of Labour, the International Labour Organisation in Bangladesh, and the secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment.

The letter outlined specific dates and names of members of the union who were allegedly threatened and harassed and forced to leave Dhaka to return to their hometowns.

It was also alleged that their union had been disallowed formation at the factory.

“Nothing has happened inside the factory,” Abdul Momin Mondal, managing director, Mondal Fashion, told Sourcing Journal as the situation unfurled over the summer, while explaining that the matter was being resolved. “One of the trade unions complained to the RMG Sustainability Council (RSC) and they came to investigate. We came to know they got complaints from the trade union, but as far as we know any incident has happened outside the company. We set up our own team to investigate and figure it out,” he said.

As far as denying the formation of the trade union within the factory, he said: “The formation of a trade union simply requires an application to the labor office, and they made their application there. Their request was refused by the labor office. I cannot answer on why, since this is a decision that is not made by us,” he said.

Mondal Fashions Ltd. is a part of the Mondal Group which counts 19 factories across different locations.

According to Nazma Akhter, president, Sommilito Garments Sramik Federation, the facts spoke for themselves, as did the dismissal of three members of the union.

“Nothing happened in the factory because they hired goons who were waiting at the factory all day accosting the workers and union representatives outside the factory,” she rebutted, citing several specific incidents which have also been included in the letter to BGMEA. The letter highlighted “unfair labor practices and anti-trade union discrimination by the owner of Mondal Fashions Ltd.,” and a request to “take necessary legal action into the matter.”

“In reality, the hired goons were waiting at the factory the whole day and when workers got out they attacked some of the proposed union members. They threatened the women leaders, and on July 29 and 30, four proposed union members were forced to resign after work, and they were scared to seek help,” Akhter said.

The letter of complaint added that the proposed general secretary of the union was able to get away and make a report to the Ashulia Thana committee through his mobile phone.

“Members of the union also informed the Industrial Police of Ashulia Zone, SB (Special Branch), NSI representatives who spoke to the building owner of the factory through the management and freed the detained organizers of SGSF. At this time, two mobile phones that were seized were kept by the factory management. Injured workers received healthcare from Upazila Health Complex, Savar, Dhaka,” the letter stated.

Akhter said that factory officials visited the homes of several of the workers, along with other parties, and threatened the workers, while advising them to leave their homes, and the city, within hours.

Factory management denied these occurrences, telling Sourcing Journal that they would not venture into an area where workers live together.

As a result, a negotiation meeting was held at the BGMEA office on Sept. 18, with representatives of BGMEA, the Mondal factory management and the SGSF union members.

A unanimous decision was made after taking all the facts in consideration, including the reinstatement of nine workers, who could “rejoin with continuity of employment with due wages if they wished, otherwise they would be provided with legal benefits through negotiation.”

In addition, “factory authorities will operate the factory as per labor law. If any misunderstanding or labor unrest ever arises, the authorities will resolve the issue in consultation with SGSF.”

“It’s good that they signed a settlement,” said Monika Hartsel, deputy country program director at Solidarity Center, Bangladesh. “In many cases the workers get fired and paid out and that’s the most common thing. It’s pretty rare to have a reinstatement of terminated union leaders. If the retaliation stops, then they have the potential to make a collective bargaining statement and really help the workers.”

“In Bangladesh, there are independent unions,” Hartsel explained. “By which we mean there are unions that represent the interests of the workers and not the employers; then there are politically aligned unions, and the third kind, the yellow unions—which may be politically-aligned, but also employer-aligned, that’s a trend in Bangladesh.

“The troubling sign we are seeing is management dominating unions and their interference with workers who are trying to represent the interests of the workers. It is hard for an independent union built by the workers.”

International organizations and policy makers have been increasingly highlighting the need for more checks and balances, and assurances of labor safety in Bangladesh.

On Nov. 16, for instance, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced the Presidential Memorandum on Advancing Worker Empowerment, Rights, and High Labor Standards Globally, and while making the announcement said that those who threaten, intimidate or attack union leaders, labor rights defenders and labor organizations “will be held accountable.”

The questions remains, can Bangladesh, in fact, solve its labor issues without outside intervention?

“We have the right to, and we will solve them. These are our people,” said one manufacturer.