Problems and Prospects of Trade Union in Bangladesh

Problems and Prospects of Trade Union in Bangladesh

1.     Introduction:

Trade Union is the most common figure in a country. Trade unions are the controller of the labor force of an industry which works for the betterment of the country’s trade by ensuring the right of the labor force. The economic importance of trade unions in developing countries is not commensurate with the size of their membership. The behavior of Bangladeshi trade unions is characterized by political activism, and momentous strikes, called Hartal there, have played a crucial part in most political changes in this country. In Bangladesh, Almost 100 % of the workers and employees of the public sector are unionized, while one out of six of the wage earners in the private formal sector are unionized. The aim of this discussion is to provide a simple theoretical framework for analyzing this dimension of trade union activity, and to test its main implication in the case of Bangladesh.

1.1.         Trade Union:

Different scholars have defined a trade union in different ways. Sydney and Beatrice Webb have defined a trade union as “a continuous association of wage earners for the purpose of maintaining or improving the conditions of their working lives”. A trade union is also called as a labor union. A labor union is an organization of workers who have banned or unified together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its voluntary; bargains with the employer on behalf of the union members and collective bargain with the employers. This may include the negotiation of working conditions like wages, rules, time, job security etc. the agreements are strictly negotiated by the union leader on behalf of the whole trade union with the employers. In some cases non member workers also bargain with the employer.

1.2.       Historical background of Trade Union in Bangladesh:  

The history of Trade union movement in Bangladesh dated back to early 19^th century when modern industrial concept entered into the sub-Indian continent. Like many other movement, the trade union movement also was similar in India Bangladesh. The number of trade unions which was 411, increased into 1174 in 1971 after the bloody liberation war and the independence of Bangladesh. Bangladesh Trade Union Kendra (BTUC) which was backed by the socialist party, it was nationalized after the war of liberation. Awami league got the governing power and changed the constitutions of trade union. From that very day political influence was imposed on the trade unions of Bangladesh. Democratic functions which were backed in the 60’s were changing by the aggression of ruling party men. Unions were forcibly captured. Political, administrative and managerial influences make it difficult to work independently for trade unions. From 1975-1983, 217 factories were privatized. For that reason there was no influence of trade union on those. But after all systems, outsiders influence has made alive the trade unions. The jute and cotton sectors, which were nationalized in 1971, in the wake of the struggle for independence, and then privatized to some extent in the 1980s, are the most unionized sectors. Unions are also important in the transport sector and in various services. As emphasized by Pencavel (1995), among others, unions in developing countries get their power from their privileged relationship with political parties and in many cases with the government. The Bangladeshi trade unions are no exception, and are well known for their lobbying the government rather than acting vis-à-vis the private sector. The influence of unions goes beyond the standard reach of industrial relations, and extends to the political arena. All the political parties, even the smallest ones, exert some control over a trade union. The three main political parties have their own trade union federation, which accounts for 64 % of the unionized workers. The unions have played an active role in most major political events of this country, like the massive demonstrations (hartals) that brought General Ershad down in 1990, or those which pushed the democratically elected government of Begum Khaleda Zia to resign in 1996. According to the World Bank (2001), an average of 21 full working days was lost annually due to hartals in the 1980s, and an average of 47 full working days per year in the 1990s. This report estimates that about 5 % of GDP is lost on average in the 1990s. Since independence of Bangladesh, no major development took place in the history of labor legislation till the enactment of the Bangladesh Labor Act, 2006. The Bangladesh Labor Act, 2006 is a major and comprehensive enactment regarding industrial relation system-- partly as a response to demand of stakeholders for improving regulatory framework on trade union and partly by demand for codification of existing labor laws in order to avoid overlapping and inconsistencies. It brought some significant changes in industrial relation system. However, the Act has not been able to bring the desired changed due to its in-built weaknesses, suspension of many labor rights under state of emergency and lack of institutional capacity to implement the laws. Still in today’s era the trade union of Bangladesh is captured by the power parties of different interested arena.

1.3.        Causes of organizing Trade Union:

In earlier times when industry was on a small scale and the few apprentice and craftsmen whom the master craftsmen employed usually lived with him, conditions of employment and any grievances were easily discussed individually or in small groups and quickly settled. Modern industry is very difficult. It is organized on a large a scale, and the maintenance of the close direct relation between employee and employer for the settling of differences is difficult. The status and security which workers had in earlier communities have gone and in their place they need the protection of trade unions. Considerably, to answer the question why trade unions are organized; we have to say that, it is created to bargain and ensure the status, rights, wages and demands of workers of the modern world of industry. Thus modern industrial policies are complex due to the expansion on business; it is very much needed to have a group of people or volunteers who actively work for the labor negotiations. So it is clear that trade unions are growing rapidly in an economy because of the expansion of business and economical growth.

1.4.         Objectives of the study:

Today’s world is globalized. So businesses are also globalized. For this globalization businesses are expanding rapidly for that reason the workforce in the industries is increasing hugely. To maintain the whole work force alone by the management is a very tough job. Trade unions are the only way to manage, compliant, and control the labor force. Lots of objectives are there to organize trade unions.

From the workers point of view three important objectives of trade union today are as follows:

1.  To defend or improve the wages and working conditions of workers and to bring about a change in the economic order.
2. To strengthen their (labor) bargaining power collectively to establish and achieve all their rights.
3. To dully protect all other interest of the workers.

And from the management’s point of view the objectives as written:

1. To reduce the number of negotiation
2. To specify work rules, disagreements and grievances to give the better solution to workers claim.
3. To establish the efficient communication between the employers and management to enforce the predictable standards.
4. To enhance the overall organizational effectiveness workers can also be sometimes inspired to form and organize trade union.

In fact, objectives of a trade union are not defined; rather these are changing according to the need of the economy and overall industry. When these objectives are not settled then the rivals are started.

1.5.         Scope and limitations of the study:

There are huge scopes to work in this field. The scope & exposure of the paper has been wide ranging. The study, ‘‘Problems and prospect of Trade Union in Bangladesh” has covered the impact of different in internal and external factors in the Garments Sector. By preparing this report it becomes more understandable about the real conditions of Trade Union in the Bangladesh.

There are also some limitations were faced during the preparation of the report. These are:

1.      Limited access into factories

2.      Difficulties to communicate with factory owners

3.      Time constraint

4.      Unwillingness of Company owner & other respondent to disclose their identities

2.     Methodology of the study:

2.1.         Sources of Data:

Here we used data from two sources. These sources are,

a.      Primary Source:

Ø  Face to face conversation with the owner of the garments, workers, labor union leaders and staff.

Ø  Survey through Questionnaire

b.      Secondary Source:

Ø  Different books and articles

Ø  Evidence from newspapers  

3.     Present Scenario of Trade Union in Bangladesh:

Compared to the total labor force in the country, the number of trade union members is very small. From 1,160 trade unions with a membership of 450,606 in 1971 trade unions had risen

Categories	Total number of unions/federations	Number of unions included	Number of members
National federation	32	1,264	1,263,665
Industrial federation	108	721	640,221
Garments federation	15	80	50,149
Basic union	5,242	-	2,069,614

to 6,835 with a membership of 1,904,567 in 2004. The average membership of trade unions has declined significantly. Trade union density is 1.12 per cent of the total labor force. The presence of trade unions in the private export-oriented sectors such as RMG, EPZs, shrimp exporting firms, finished leather and leather goods is very weak. For instance, although there are more than 40 unions representing garments workers, the level of unionization among workers is very poor. Most trade unions in the RMG sector operate outside the factories and therefore lack active participation of the general workers. A combination of factors such as lack of enforcement of labor laws, inhibiting legal provisions, and system of contract labor are responsible for reduced trade union membership in these sectors. The workers belonging to government sectors, educational institutions, health sector, private security services, confidential staffs, workers in security printing press, ordinance factory, are still deprived from the right to organize and do not have the freedom of collective bargaining. Trade unionism in sectors such as nursing or rural electrification is banned. Government and private owners also discourage trade unions in cement factories, re-rolling mills etc. Furthermore, trade union leaders and members are frequently intimidated and harassed by employers and security forces.

3.1.         Prospects of Trade Union in Bangladesh:

Every association has impacts in management. Trade union has both positive and negative impacts on management. These positives impacts are given below.

1. Trade union plays a major role in creating ideal working conditions. It creates pressure on management to do a favorable roster for workers.
2. Trade union always helps management to create better policies for workers and to plan effective production targets.
3. Labors are treated fairly, only then they will maintain the working standard. Trade unions negotiate for the standard wage and benefits with the management.
4. Trade union helps the management to make working environment more active which increases the productivity as well as the profit.
5. Political influence’s existence makes the trade union not to interfere in management decisions.

3.2.         Problems of Trade Union in Bangladesh:

There are also some negative impacts. These impacts are given below.

1. Trade unions creating more positions by the permission of management and appointing more than need of workers. It’s creating a surplus of manpower but not of productivity.
2. Trade union of Bangladesh bargains more than they understand because of the limitations of their knowledge. So it becomes difficult to make any decision by consulting with the TU. If don’t consult then they strike.
3. Trade union is legal and it has the right to discuss with the management. That is why TU think about its power. When they think they have equal power of management then clashes are started.
4. In companies labors are awarded for good work and threatened for bad work. But if its punished then trade union interfere and don’t let to happen the punishment. So it increases crime of the labors.
5. Trade union leaders always try to save their interest first then the labor. And it is always communicated that management body did the wrong. So this unethical performance creates conflict between TU and managerial body.

4.1.         Recommendations: 

   In the context of the world industry, Bangladesh is very younger. So it should follow some measurements in order to increase its stability of economy. In the light of Japanese and western trade union concept, some suggestion or steps can be defined to improve and establish the real trade union culture in Bangladesh. These steps must be taken in both public and private sectors. These are as follows:

1.      Strengthening bilateral collective bargaining for solving problems quickly and effectively

2.      Multiplicity of trade union creates the rivals in a union. So it must be reduced.

3.      Political involvement must be reduced. A trade union without the control of politics only can be the way of all solution of the problems of management and worker.

4.      Organization must support financially as trade unions support the worker, it will change the motives of worker and will be more productive for company.

5.      Workers are less knowledgeable, so training programs under trade union should be helpful to develop the skills of the workers.

6.      Trade union’s function should be increased and widened throughout the organization. It will help workers to work voluntarily for organizational growth.

7.      Union leader must be given importance and encourage him many ways to play positive role in the union as his power implications.

8.      Trust is a big asset of an organization. If trust between workers and management increases, productivity increases. This is the job of an effective trade union.

9.      Management must help and guide trade unions to settle industrial clashes and crisis. It is trade union who has control over the workers. It helps totally to stop strikes and rivals of workers.

10. The demand of trade union matters a lot to the economy. If demands are reasonable and real then it should be worked out. But if it is not, then a strike breaks out. So trade unions always should demand reasonable thing to the management.

4.2.     Conclusion:

     The industrial relation system is pre-dominantly confrontational in nature rather than cooperative in Bangladesh. It is characterized by the pre-dominant position of informal economy, fragmented unions, weak labor institutions, lack of enforcement of labor laws and conflict ridden employer-employee relations.  Although in recent times the rate of unionization has increased in the RMG sector, trade union affiliation is low in Bangladesh compared to many other developing countries. The main reasons for this are the fall in employment in previously highly organized sectors, rise of the service sector and increasing flexible types of employment relationships. The promotion of independent trade unions and collective bargaining can contribute to political and social stability and consequently create more favorable climate for foreign investment. Several studies of the World Bank and ILO support the view that freedom of association and collective bargaining contribute to improving economic and trade performance and have found no negative correlation. Rather, highly coordinated bargaining accompanied by higher rates of unionization can contribute to positive economic trends. Trade unions have an important role to play in settling disputes between workers and management over wages by way of collective bargaining. However, empirical data show that the experience is far from satisfactory.