Labour leaders urge political parties to prioritise workers' rights in election manifestos

Labour leaders have demanded that workers' rights be given priority in political parties' election manifestos for the upcoming national election.

Although political change in Bangladesh is often achieved through the sacrifices of workers, their rights are routinely neglected once parties come to power, according to labour leaders who spoke at a press conference on Wednesday (7 January) at a city hotel, organised by the Labour Rights National Advocacy Alliance. 

The programme aimed to ensure the inclusion of labour rights in election manifestos and to secure clear national-level political commitments on labour issues.

At the event, the alliance presented a proposed "workers' manifesto" to political parties contesting the election. The manifesto was presented by Syed Sultan Uddin Ahmed, member secretary of the alliance and executive director of the Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS).

The manifesto includes 15 key recommendations, including amending labour laws to ensure legal recognition, registration and protection for all workers; guaranteeing decent and dignified work; ensuring fair, living wages; and establishing safe and healthy workplaces. It also calls for increased compensation for workplace accidents and the publication of investigation reports, as well as stronger social protection measures such as rationing, housing and healthcare for workers.

Other demands outlined in the manifesto include freedom of association and collective bargaining, workers' participation in industrial relations and policymaking, the elimination of harassment, violence and discrimination in workplaces, and the establishment of equal rights at work. It also calls for extending paid maternity leave for women workers to six months, taking effective measures to end child and adolescent labour, and ensuring accountability and transparency of labour-related institutions.

The manifesto further stresses the need for a just transition in the context of climate change, technological transformation and the Fourth Industrial Revolution. It also highlights the rights and safety of migrant workers, trade union rights for workers in Export Processing Zones (EPZs), and the establishment of a permanent national labour commission.

The event was chaired by Nazrul Islam Khan, convener of the Alliance, general secretary of BILS and a standing committee member of the BNP. In his remarks, he said the Workers' Manifesto would not remain limited to being handed over to political parties, but would also be disseminated among workers at the grassroots level. 

He added that the alliance would strengthen communication, lobbying and advocacy with national-level policymakers.

"Our objective is to build a national consensus on the rights and welfare of working people," he said.

Syed Sultan Uddin Ahmed said workers make the greatest sacrifices and shed the most blood in every democratic movement, yet their concerns are often forgotten during transitions of power. He urged political parties and candidates to remember workers' contributions and prioritise labour rights accordingly.

Among others, Mesbah Uddin Ahmed, senior joint convener of the alliance and president of the National Workers' Coalition, also spoke at the event. 

Representatives of various trade unions affiliated with the alliance and members of civil society were also present at the press conference.