More sectors should adopt initiatives such as those being undertaken by the RMG industry to improve awareness of workplace safety.
According to the Occupational Safety, Health, and Environment Foundation, at least 951 workers were killed and a similar number injured in Bangladesh last year in accidents at their workplaces.
Nearly three-quarters of these deaths occurred in the informal sector. This suggests that formal workplaces such as factories and sites in the RMG and shipbuilding industries are beginning to benefit from being the subject of major stakeholder safety campaigns such as Accord and Alliance.
There is still a long way to go, however, in many other sectors. It is telling, for instance, that 347 workers lost their lives in the transport sector, where the greatest single number of deaths occurred, reflecting the poor state of safety on our nation’s roads.
Likewise, it is tragic that 47 people were killed while working as domestics and 68 agricultural workers lost their lives due to lighting strikes.
The government and employer organisations should do more to raise awareness and improve safety practices across all sectors.
A good approach to adopt is the Improving Working Conditions in the RMG sector in Bangladesh program being undertaken by the Bangladesh Employers Federation with BGMEA and BKMEA. This project supported by the ILO and major donors is improving workplace safety by training more safety experts within industries, and aims to directly disseminate good practice by raising awareness on safety procedures among 800,000 workers in the coming year.
Directly involving more workers in raising awareness about safety is key to brining about the cultural shift workplaces need to ensure that health and safety is always put first. All sectors need to do more to ensure workplace safety is the top priority.
Dhaka Tribune
