The project aims to improve working conditions in four select sectors (RMG, tea, shrimp farming, and construction) in three geographic areas (sylhet, khulna and dhaka) by building the capacity of…

The Department of Labor's Bureau of International Labor Affairs awarded a $9 million cooperative agreement to the Solidarity Center to improve occupational safety and health and address gender-based violence and harassment in Bangladesh's ready-made garment, shrimp farming, construction, and tea sectors from October 1, 2022 to September 30, 2026.

Through the award, the Solidarity Center will build the capacity of workers and unions in the target sectors to identify and collectively address OSH issues, advocate for safer and more equitable workplaces, and strengthen worker organizations. Key activities will include training workers and unions on their rights, establishing safety committees, conducting advocacy campaigns, engaging in law and policy development, and facilitating collective bargaining negotiations. The award will also support sub-awards to unions and non-profits representing workers in the tea, construction, and shrimp farming industries to implement related capacity building programs.

The project aims to improve working conditions in four select sectors (RMG, tea, shrimp farming, and construction) in three geographic areas (sylhet, khulna and dhaka) by building the capacity of workers to identify and collectively seek remediation for occupational safety and health issues, including gbvh, and to advocate for safer, healthier and more equitable workplaces and surrounding communities. While there is not a catalyzing catastrophic event to draw attention to the labor conditions in tea, shrimp farming and construction sectors as there was in the RMG sector, the slow onset effects of climate change that exacerbate existing OSH concerns should raise similar alarm. Therefore, the program will also take into account the impacts of climate change and environmental degradation on workers and their communities. The design also recognizes that though industrial accidents and fires are the most visible OSH hazards, less widely discussed industrial health issues can have long-term negative impacts on workers, families and communities. Common occupational diseases in the four target sectors include musculoskeletal disorders, pesticide poisoning, heat exhaustion, respiratory illness, reproductive health issues, and cancer. IT is essential to address these safety and health concerns holistically. The SC will utilize a whole-of-community approach (as effectively piloted by the SC in the RMG, shrimp and fish processing, and leather tanneries sectors) to engage workers, their unions, community members and community-based organizations in joint initiatives for improving working and living conditions in the selected areas. This will include community-based interventions, tailored to each sector, where project participants can participate in training, seek legal counsel or health services, and hold organizing and advocacy meetings to advance their shared goals. The approach recognizes that workers' lives extend beyond the factory or farm gate and that workplace and public health overlap in tangible ways. Activities performed during the three-to-six-month start-up period, the SC and partner organizations will conduct initial needs assessments in each sector (four total) that will include the leadership of partner organizations, worker-leaders from the target sectors, relevant SC staff, and the project director. Due to the size and complexity of the shrimp farming and tea sectors, the needs assessment will require 3 days. Since the scale of project activities planned for the construction sector is relatively less, the assessment will require only 2 days. Likewise, as the SC has been implementing programs in the RMG sector for decades, only 1 day is needed. The assessments will include participatory analysis of the sector; key local, national, and international allies and decision-makers; unique needs of marginalized worker groups in the production systems, particularly related to OSH and gbvh; and relevant conditions contributing to and perpetuating the problems. For construction, shrimp farming and tea, which are new sectors of work, the assessment will include in-depth analysis of the geographic areas to determine the specific communities and workplaces where the program has both access and potential for the greatest impact. In each assessment, facilitators will lead analysis of the root causes of disparities and inequities that workers from marginalized groups face. Facilitators will use popular education techniques to elicit contributions from the participants, applying an intersectional gender analysis to identify specific needs arising from the experience of women, gender diverse individuals, and ethnic and religious minorities in the project sectors. During sensitive conversations about gender equality and gbvh, facilitators will divide focus groups by SEX to create an environment where participants feel safe and comfortable to share. The initial assessment will identify any threats to safety for organizations and workers taking part in the project, including an analysis of the possible origins of the threats, the differentiated impacts on men and women, and the resources available to minimize the possibility of negative impacts. The assessment sessions will include participatory strategic planning for project interventions, develop sustainability plans, and build detailed year 1 work plans. Deliverables the project envisions an approach to strengthen worker organizations and improve worker knowledge around OSH and gbvh. Central to this strategy will be inclusion of women workers, who make up the majority of the RMG, shrimp farming and tea workforce, and on the opposite side of the spectrum, the extreme minority of the construction sector. The strategy is articulated in 6 parts, which correspond to the project sub-outcomes: 1. Educate: the increased capacity of workers and their organizations to train on promoting safer, healthier, and more equitable workplaces and communities will improve the effectiveness of worker organizations in educating and engaging their membership. The SC will prioritize OSH and labor rights training-of-trainers (TOT) in all sectors to strengthen the capacity of partner organizations to train workers on their rights. 2. Represent: by building the capacity of worker organizations to represent members to promote safer, healthier, and more equitable workplaces and communities, institutions and individuals will be better equipped to take up worker priorities and collectively deliver real change in living and working conditions. Across the four sectors, the SC will utilize a menu of safety committee trainings, gender equality and gbvh trainings, paralegal capacity building, and legal support to advance this strategy. 3. Advocate: the increased capacity of workers, community members and their organizations to advocate for safer, healthier and more equitable workplaces and communities will be critical to strengthening worker organizations and addressing OSH and gbvh issues in the target sectors. In consultation with partners, the SC will utilize a variety of mediums (digital, print, audio, etc.) and venues (cultural celebrations, community health camps, etc.) to make advocacy campaigns more accessible and inclusive, which in turn, increases buy-in and makes them more powerful. 4. Engage: the increased engagement of workers and their organizations in law and policy development and implementation is key to improving worker organizations' ability to address and resolve workers' concerns. To support partners in this area, the SC will conduct an OSH legal and policy GAP analysis, conduct multi-stakeholder meetings, and initiate engagement with the national OSH council. 5. Negotiate: the strengthened capacity of workers to negotiate with employers on worker rights issues, including OSH and gbvh, is necessary to address and resolve worker's rights concerns, including OSH conditions and gbvh. To that end, the SC will conduct joint management and worker trainings and collective bargaining mentoring. All steps will be accompanied by broader union capacity building, which is fundamental to sustaining their ability to protect and represent workers on labor rights issues, particularly OSH and gbvh. Intended beneficiary in bangladesh, the target worker population will include men and women workers from the RMG, shrimp farming, construction, and tea sectors. The majority of RMG workers are women, many of whom are internal migrants. Shrimp farmers in khulna are majority women day laborers working at unregistered farms. The tea workers are based in the sylhet area and are also majority women workers. Through this project, the SC will target construction workers in the dhaka division, the great majority of whom are men in the informal economy. Subrecipient activities target worker and non-governmental organizations for capacity building and strengthening include bangladesh CHA sramik union (BCSU), imarat nirman sramik union bangladesh (INSUB), and rural and urban poor's partner for social advancement (RUPSA). BCSU has played an important role in representing tea workers since its founding in 1948. The union is the largest national labor union in bangladesh and represents more than 100,000 workers of which two-thirds are women and girls in the chittagong and sylhet region. BCSU has strong organizational capacity, a sectoral CBA that is up for renewal, and an understanding of the impact of poor OSH and labor rights conditions in the tea sector. INSUB is an independent national trade union representing over 60,000 workers in the construction sector in bangladesh. INSUB has a strong history of advocating for the implementation of worker rights, including living wages and safe working conditions. INSUB is also an active affiliate of the bangladesh trade union center, which is a national level federation. RUPSA is a grassroots NGO registered in 1994 and based in khulna, working to develop social, cultural, economic, and environmental conditions to improve livelihoods of coastal communities. RUPSA is implementing activities in the khulna district of bangladesh in the following areas: workers' rights, health and hygiene, mangrove reforestation, livelihood development, and transgender community livelihood development. RUPSA is also implementing an SC subaward under USAID's workers' empowerment and participation activity. Through the subaward, RUPSA is managing a worker community center and implementing dozens of associated activities including training on fundamental labor rights and OSH, membership building among the worker community association, and strategic advocacy for access to public services. RUPSA has strong connections with shrimp farming workers and their communities and local authorities in the project's target geographic areas.