Call for collective efforts to promote gender equality at work

Female labour inspectors and other participants underscored the need for collective efforts to promote gender-equality in the workplace by ensuring maternity protection, eliminating violence and harassment in the workplace, and appointing more women in leadership positions.

"We have made huge progress in economic participation and opportunity for women, educational attainment through girls' access to education… Bangladesh has made substantial advancements in improving women's health and well-being," Labour and Employment Secretary Md Ehsan-E-Elahi said at a discussion at the Female Labour Inspectors Conference at the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in the capital on Thursday.

Under the theme, "Promoting gender equality at work in Bangladesh", the conference was organised by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) of the Labour and Employment Ministry.

DIFE labour inspectors shared their experience in identifying the key challenges and priorities for gender equality in the country at the discussion centred on the importance of partnership and collective efforts to promote gender equality in all industries, supported by coordinated efforts by the government, workers, and employers.

DIFE is the national labour inspectorate of Bangladesh, which is responsible for ensuring welfare, safety, and healthy working conditions for workers in various sectors by enforcing national labour laws in line with the International Labour Standards.

The proportion of female labour inspectors in DIFE rose from 11% in 2013 to 21% in 2017. Currently, out of the total 523 existing posts, there are 114 female officials working in DIFE.

"We will try to gather the suggestions and findings from the conference, and incorporate them in the amended labour laws and policies," said Labour and Employment Secretary Md Ehsan-E-Elahi.

"In 2010, there were only two female labour inspectors, and today we have about 82 female labour inspectors. This is truly a testimony of change and the progress in developing the capacity of the labour sector," said Tuomo Poutiainen, ILO country director in Bangladesh.

"I would like to congratulate the female labour inspectors for their dedication in promoting gender equality and labour rights in the country. Their commitment and hard work are making a tangible impact on the lives of workers in Bangladesh," said Anne van Leeuwen, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Bangladesh.

"We have to work together to ensure that industries are evolving in a woman-friendly and environmentally safe manner," said Canadian High Commissioner in Dhaka Lilly Nicholls.

The event was attended by more than 200 participants, including representatives from the government, employers' and workers' organisations, and development partners.

Md Nasiruddin Ahmed, inspector general of DIFE, Khaled Mamun Chowdhury, director general of Department of Labour, Vidiya Amrit Khan, representative of Bangladesh Employers Federation, and Shameem Ara, member of National Coordination Committee on Workers Education (NCCWE) and president of BJSF, among others, were present.