Apparel sector needs worker-centred plan for green transition: Stakeholders
They also called for tripartite dialogue, meaningful worker participation, reskilling, social protection, employment security, occupational safety, and trade union rights in the transition process.
Bangladesh's transition towards renewable and low-carbon energy in the apparel sector must prioritise workers' job security, skills development, social protection, and rights, speakers said at a multi-stakeholder dialogue in Chattogram today (25 August).
They called for a worker-centred policy framework for a just energy transition, saying industrial modernisation and green technologies should not come at the cost of employment.
The dialogue, titled "Improving Policy Arrangements for Just Energy Transition (JET) in Bangladesh's Apparel Sector from a Labour Perspective", was held at Hotel Saint Martin in the port city.
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The National Alliance for Just Transition Bangladesh (NAJTB), Bangladesh Labour Foundation (BLF), and Manusher Jonno Foundation (MJF), with support from Oxfam Bangladesh, jointly organised the event.
Speaking at the event, AKM Ashraf Uddin, executive director of BLF and secretary of NAJTB, said workers must remain at the centre of the energy transition, with adequate social protection, reskilling opportunities, and worker-focused planning.
Dr Masud Kamal, professor of sociology at the Chittagong University, said the energy transition was not merely a technological process but also a socio-technical transformation.
He stressed the need for distributive justice so that workers do not bear the costs of decarbonisation alone.
Md Zubaer Alam, programme officer at BLF, called for translating just transition principles into concrete policies through institutional accountability and coordination among government agencies, trade unions, civil society, and regulators.
Jamir Uddin, director of the Department of Environment, Chattogram Region, said environmental compliance and renewable energy adoption must go hand in hand with worker reskilling and social protection.
Mohammad Mahabubul Hasan, deputy inspector general of the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments, Chattogram, stressed regular social dialogue, regulatory oversight and worker safety during industrial and technological transitions.
During a panel discussion, Md Hafij Ahmed Mozumder, director of the Divisional Labour Office, Chattogram, said vulnerable workers needed to be retrained and reskilled to prevent structural unemployment.
Kazi Md Shafiqul Islam Titu, chairman of the Standing Committee on Religious Affairs at Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), said workforce development must progress alongside green infrastructure.
Sheikh Abdul Mannan, president of both the Chattogram Chapter of IndustriAll Bangladesh Council (IBC) and the Bangladesh Garment Textile Leather Workers Federation (BGTLWF), warned that modernisation should not become an excuse for job cuts and called for training workers in green technologies.
Md Ali Shahin, head of Advocacy at Young Power in Social Action (YPSA), called for local vulnerability mapping and a dedicated Just Transition Fund for marginalised workers.
Rezoanul Haque Azom, senior officer at Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS) and joint secretary of NAJTB, said a one-size-fits-all approach would not work and called for sector-specific assessments in Chattogram.
Speaking at the discussion, The Business Standard's Senior Correspondent Mizanur Rahman Yousuf said, "We cannot have a green factory infrastructure while keeping workers in the dark. Transition roadmaps must reflect ground realities."
Participants called for tripartite dialogue, meaningful worker participation, reskilling, social protection, employment security, occupational safety, and trade union rights in the transition process.
They also said lessons from the apparel sector should inform just-transition plans for other sectors, including shipbreaking, leather, transport, agriculture, fisheries, and waste management.
The organisers called for a national policy framework integrating climate and energy goals with decent work, social protection, skills development, collective bargaining, and meaningful worker participation.
