When the sound of the hammer drill recedes

Around 80 percent workers in the construction industry have been out of work ever since the government imposed a 65-day general holiday to control the spread of coronavirus in the country.

TBS Report

24 July, 2020, 01:55 pm

Last modified: 24 July, 2020, 08:16 pm

The pandemic has turned our lives upside down over the last four months. Thousands of workers in the informal sector have lost their jobs as both government-funded and private projects closed down due to the novel coronavirus.

A man standing in front of stationed trucks which usually ply the highways for transporting goods from one city to another. The shutdowns had suspended transport of all goods, including construction materials, causing many people to plunge deeper into poverty. The photo was taken in Gabtoli; Photo: Salahuddin Ahmed Paulash/TBS

The work on all the construction sites have slowed down due to the pandemic. The authorities are hiring only a handful of people to ensure social distance. As a result, many workers have lost their jobs in this difficult time. The photo was taken at Karwanbazar; Photo: Salahuddin Ahmed Paulash/TBS

Around 80 percent workers in the construction industry have been out of work ever since the government imposed a 65-day general holiday to control the spread of coronavirus in the country. This decision caused construction projects to close down, forcing thousands of construction workers to plunge deep into poverty. Many of them left the city for their villages.

A man sitting at a construction site near the army stadium in Dhaka. As work is progressing slowly and many people have been laid off, many like him are worried about what the future holds for them; Photo: Salahuddin Ahmed Paulash/TBS

Women who work as road construction workers are suffering the most as many of them have been rendered jobless. The photo was taken at Kalshi in Dhaka; Photo: Salahuddin Ahmed Paulash/TBS

Piling pipes are very important for construction. However, the current pandemic has slowed down constructions and hence the demand for these pipes have fallen. But still, this man is making a pipe hoping that once everything gets better, the pipes will yield him profit. The photo was taken in Postogola; Photo: Salahuddin Ahmed Paulash/TBS

While work has resumed in government projects, many private construction projects are either yet to resume work or have deliberately slowed down the pace of work because of economic insecurity. Many reopened construction site are not hiring enough people for work. Thus, construction workers now survive in a limbo.

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A group of men making rods which are used in constructing buildings. As sales dropped due to the pandemic, production also came down, causing the factories to lay off most of their workers. The photo was taken in Narayanganj; Photo: Salahuddin Ahmed Paulash/TBS