Garment workers still face fear, low wages a decade after Rana Plaza Amnesty

Business Report :

Global fashion brands, factory owners, and governments across Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are profiting from the repression of garment workers, according to two new Amnesty International reports released on Thursday.

The reports “Stitched Up” and “Abandoned by Fashion” state that brands rely on an underpaid, mostly female workforce, while intimidation, retaliation and employer-controlled committees silence workers. Amnesty secretary general Agnès Callamard told the media that by denying workers the right to unionise, the industry has grown on exploitation.

Despite promises made after the Rana Plaza tragedy, the studies say millions of workers still face low wages, harassment and barriers to organising. Amnesty conducted research between September 2023 and August 2024, including interviews from 20 factories. Some global brands responded fully to Amnesty’s survey, while others provided partial or no information, reflecting inconsistent commitments to transparency and worker rights across the industry.

Amnesty noted that many companies continue to emphasise ethical sourcing publicly while failing to address the structural pressures that contribute to worker abuse.

Bangladeshi suppliers strongly rejected the findings. BKMEA executive president Fazle Ehsan Shamim told the media that the report was “flawed” and not reflective of factory-level realities, arguing that improvements in safety, compliance and monitoring have been overlooked.

Amnesty noted that 11 of 13 Bangladeshi workers described fear around union activity, especially in Special Economic Zones where independent unions are banned. Workers such as Susmita and Lipi told the media they faced threats for trying to organise, adding that management often treated union supporters as obstacles to production targets.

Amnesty also highlighted that Bangladesh’s minimum wage of Tk12,500 remains far below a living wage. Ehsan, also president of the Bangladesh Employers’ Federation, told the media that raising wages requires global coordination or the sector risks losing competitiveness.

The report said brands rarely adjust pricing to support wage increases, keeping factories under financial pressure. Amnesty also warned about the rise of employer-dominated “yellow unions,” which labour leader Kalpona Akter told the media were designed to weaken independent worker groups and limit genuine collective bargaining.