Before we blame, let’s study the facts: A call for a comprehensive RMG industry assessment

"The owners of these factories travel abroad, build houses and cars—there is no problem there. But there is a problem when it comes to paying the workers' dues." 

A recent statement by a respected government authority was followed by a report highlighting that 344 RMG units have yet to pay Eid bonuses, and 36 are at high risk of default. 

While the concern over worker payments is valid, the framing of the issue—casting the entire industry in a negative light—deserves closer scrutiny. 

Before making sweeping statements about an industry that contributes over 80% of Bangladesh's export earnings and employs millions, shouldn't we ask for data? 

Let's begin with this: How many of the 344 factories reportedly failing to pay bonuses have actually built assets abroad? Where is the evidence? Can we conduct a data-driven, transparent assessment before condemning an entire sector that has carried the nation's economic ambitions for decades? 

Additionally, a comprehensive study must investigate the root causes behind these factories' inability to meet wage and bonus obligations. Are these units struggling due to production disruptions caused by recent unrest? Has there been a failure by the state to ensure security and a stable environment for day-to-day operations? Or are these factories primarily SMEs that have long been underserved by the financial system, lacking access to the necessary credit and policy support needed for resilience? 

These are fundamental questions that require urgent answers. 

We must remember that the majority of these entrepreneurs risked everything to build these factories. They mortgaged their homes, sold ancestral lands, and poured in everything they had—long before the industry became the export powerhouse it is today. 

When business was favourable, they made profits, paid taxes, fulfilled dues, and invested in assets—just as any capitalist system encourages. These assets are not indulgences; they are often leveraged for further expansion, employing more people and generating even more value for the country. 

Isn't this how our financial system operates? You build, earn, and reinvest. It's the foundation of a market economy. Should we now blame the owners for doing exactly what our system rewards and depends on? 

Yes, there are defaults. But we must ask why. Business conditions have changed drastically. 

The cost of doing business is rising at an unsustainable pace. Utility crises, policy unpredictability, exchange rate volatility, and global market disruptions are pushing many previously well-run factories into distress. 

These are structural challenges—not moral failings. 

If any factory is withholding salaries to siphon money, launder funds, or stash personal gains, legal action should—and must—be taken. But framing the entire industry as exploitative based on isolated cases is not only unjust, it's dangerous. 

This narrative alienates the youth. Why would young entrepreneurs, future business leaders, or even professionals want to work in a sector where the risk of investment is met not just with financial uncertainty but also public shaming? 

Bangladesh must not forget what the RMG industry has done for its people, economy, and global image. 

What we need now is not blame but a thorough, neutral study of the industry's current state. We need to know which factories are struggling and why, what policy support they need, and how we can ensure workers' rights are protected without demonising those who built this industry from the ground up. 

Let's stand for accountability—but let it be based on facts, not frustration. 

Abrar Hossain Sayem. President of Bangladesh Apparel Youth Leaders Alliance (BAYLA). Photo: Courtesy

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