Low wages, long hours keep tea workers trapped

For generations, tea workers have helped keep Bangladesh’s tea industry running, yet many continue to struggle to secure a decent standard of living.

Across the country’s tea gardens, workers say low wages, long hours and inadequate access to housing, healthcare, sanitation and education have left families caught in a cycle of poverty and dependence.

Uttam Kaloar, another worker at Kaluti Tea Garden, broke down in tears while describing the situation to The New Nation.

“In our garden, a woman worker picks 20-23 kg of tea leaves and is paid only Tk178. When those leaves reach the factory, they are processed into about 5 kg of tea. Outside the factory, the price is Tk245 per kg. That means those 5 kg are worth around Tk1,300, yet the woman receives only Tk178,” he said.

“Tea garden owners consistently resist increasing workers’ wages. Even garden guards often seize our cattle and force our families to pay Tk300 to get them released.

Although workers are entitled to receive between Tk5,000 and Tk7,000 for housing, this money is rarely provided. On average, a family earns only about Tk1,300 a week, forcing even our children to work as day labourers for around Tk200 a day just to survive.”

Deprived of basic rights, thousands of tea workers like Uttam remain at the heart of Bangladesh’s plantation economy while living and working under conditions marked by low wages and persistent problems involving sanitation, housing, healthcare, children’s education and leave entitlements.

According to a 2018 survey by Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB), there were 164 registered tea gardens in the country. Most are located in Moulvibazar, Habiganj, Sylhet, Chattogram and Rangamati, employing a total of 122,840 workers.

The tea industry provides livelihoods directly to around five lakh people and indirectly to another five lakh through tea trading, brokerage, warehousing and other related services.

Wage system and forced overwork
Labour leaders said tea workers’ wages are not determined by the government’s Minimum Wages Board. Instead, wages are fixed through a memorandum of agreement (MoA) between employers represented by the Bangladesh Tea Association and workers represented by the Cha Sramik Union.
The MoA is generally valid for two years.

Workers are required to pluck an average of 23-24 kg of tea leaves a day. If they fail to meet the target, their wages are reduced proportionately, labour leaders said.

Krishna Das Almik, a worker at Kaluti Tea Garden and secretary of the Cha Sramik Trade Union, told The New Nation that wages vary according to the category of the tea garden.

Tea gardens are classified as A, B and C categories. An A-category worker receives Tk187.42 a day, a B-category worker Tk186.32 and a C-category worker Tk185.22.

“Tea workers receive an annual bonus equivalent to 55 days’ wages, with 60 percent paid during Durga Puja and the remaining 40 percent during Lal Puja,” he said.

However, a New Nation correspondent in Moulvibazar said tea workers are officially scheduled to work from 9am to 4pm for a daily wage of Tk178. After 4pm, many continue working to collect additional tea leaves, which they sell for Tk22 per kg.

A worker collects around 15-20 kg of additional tea leaves on average in the afternoon, he said, meaning workers often have to work beyond their regular hours to supplement their income.

Some tea gardens also provide workers with facilities such as basic medical services, first-aid supplies and warm clothing during winter.

Sanitation, shelter and workplace safety
Krishna Das said sanitation facilities remain inadequate, even in labour colonies.

“We only had toilets that were built during the British period, while the previous Awami League government provided us with a few tubewells. But the number of toilets and tubewells is completely inadequate,” he said.

Most gardens also lack rest shelters in working areas, despite such facilities being required under labour rules.

“In most gardens, there is no shed where workers can rest when necessary or take shelter during rain,” he said.

The TIB survey found that tea garden authorities are supposed to provide masks, gloves, shoes, protective eyewear and head coverings to workers who spray pesticides.

However, 57 percent of workers engaged in pesticide spraying reported that they received none of these protective items. Around 20 percent of the workers surveyed said they were involved in pesticide spraying.

Healthcare and leave
Krishna Das said obtaining sick leave can itself become a difficult process.

“I applied for sick leave, but I was required to submit a medical report. This became a burden because I had to rush to the hospital and stand in a long queue just to obtain the report. Then I had to hurry back to the tea garden and reach at exactly 12pm to mark my attendance. That was the exhausting process I had to go through just to get sick leave,” he said.

Political and local rights organisations have long been working to protect tea workers’ rights.
Tanjina Begum, president of the Democratic Students Council’s Sylhet division, told The New Nation that tea gardens lack adequate maternity protection.

“Pregnant women workers are entitled to four months of maternity leave. However, many continue working until the final days of pregnancy so they can preserve their postnatal leave,” she said.

“Prolonged standing, physically demanding work, early motherhood and malnutrition contribute to miscarriages, infant deaths and other health complications.”

Tanjina said poor working conditions, inadequate access to safe drinking water, sanitation problems and limited healthcare leave many female workers suffering from long-term health complications during and after pregnancy.

The latest TIB survey found that workers in most gardens can take a maximum of 20 days of sick leave, but they must obtain a medical certificate from a healthcare centre. Workers sometimes have to wait for hours at medical facilities even when they are ill.

Rani Bala, a worker at Gazipur Tea Garden, said women workers receive no special leave or facilities during menstruation.

“Even during this time, the tea garden authorities do not allow us to take leave,” she said.
Children and education

Uttam said many tea workers remain trapped in a cycle of debt.
“We borrowed money for our sons’ and daughters’ marriages. Life inside the tea gardens continues in a cycle of hardship, exploitation and silent suffering,” he said.

Doyal Almik, a worker at Jhilpara Tea Garden, said educational facilities are also inadequate.
“There are one or two rooms in garden schools where students from five grades attend classes. Most teachers at those schools are paid on a daily basis like non-permanent workers,” he said.
Fear of speaking out
Workers said they often fear losing their jobs if they complain about wages, working conditions or harassment.

A tea worker, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The New Nation, “We have been facing a large number of problems. If I tell you everything, I will lose my job, and I am sure today will be my last day.”
Tanjina Begum said the relationship between tea garden owners and workers often resembles that between landlords and tenants, making meaningful dialogue difficult.

“Tea workers rarely get the opportunity to discuss fundamental issues such as wages or land rights. Workers and rights groups raise problems with garden management, but in most cases, those discussions end with little tangible outcome,” she said.

She added that her organisation was working to secure basic rights for tea workers in Sylhet, Moulvibazar, Habiganj and Chattogram.

Uttam said the current wages are insufficient to support a family.
“It is not possible to support a family with the wages a tea worker receives,” he said.
“When tea garden owners submit reports to the government, it appears that they are providing us with everything. In reality, we receive nothing.”

Tea garden managers, however, denied the allegations.
Garden authorities reject allegations
Rahel Rana, manager of Champarai Tea Company, questioned why workers would remain in their jobs if they were dissatisfied with the wages.

“Before giving my statement, I want to say that if tea workers are unhappy with their wages, why don’t they switch jobs? They never leave because of the flexibility and other facilities,” he told The New Nation.

He said a tea worker is entitled to 19 days of sick leave a year, but alleged that some workers pressure medical staff to issue false health certificates.

“We cannot encourage them to do that,” he said.

According to Rana, a tea worker normally receives Tk187.23 a day for collecting around 23 kg of tea leaves, in addition to other benefits.

Asked about reports that garden guards charge Tk300 to release workers’ cattle, Rana said the practice was intended to discourage cattle from damaging young tea leaves.

“The amount is Tk150-200,” he said.

Dipon Singho, a manager of the National Tea Company, said workers receive an additional Tk5 per kg for every kilogram of tea leaves collected beyond the daily target of 23 kg during the peak season from March to December.

He said workers also have other sources of income and receive various benefits from management, including medical services, treatment costs, housing, house repairs and subsidised food.

“Each tea worker receives 10 kg of rice or flour at a subsidised price of Tk2 per kg,” he said.

However, both managers acknowledged that medical and sanitation facilities in some tea gardens remain poor, while saying owners are now paying greater attention to improving them.

What the law says vs reality

Ram Bhajan Kairi, former general secretary of the Bangladesh Tea Workers Union, said Section 28 of the labour law needs to be amended to ensure gratuity for tea workers.

Under the Bangladesh Labour Law (Amendment) Ordinance 2025, the legal definition of “worker” was expanded to include domestic workers, rural agricultural labourers, river transport workers and plantation workers, including those employed in tea, rubber, fruit, flower and herbal gardens.

One significant change is the extension of maternity leave from 112 days to 120 days.

The amendment also increased compensation for workplace-related death or permanent disability from Tk200,000 to Tk300,000.

Advocate Badrul Kochi, a labour law expert and Bangladesh Supreme Court lawyer, told The New Nation that Section 115 of the law provides for casual leave, while Section 117 provides annual leave with pay.

He also said Section 32 protects the housing rights of tea workers and prevents their eviction from employer-provided accommodation.

Despite these legal protections, accounts from workers and rights activists suggest that significant gaps remain between what the law guarantees and what tea workers experience in their daily lives.