The International Labour Organisation has called for greater social dialogue among representatives of government, employers and workers in the Bangladesh ready-made garment sector, highlighting the gains this would bring.
“There are considerable benefits to be gained by both businesses and workers from enhanced social dialogue which also leads to better industrial relations,” an ILO statement quoted its assistant director general and regional director for Asia and the Pacific Ms Tomoko Nishimoto as saying.
“For employers, an engaged workforce is more likely to be a productive and profitable workforce; a workforce which helps drive growth and attracts investment. For the workforce meanwhile, social dialogue can deliver enhanced wages and better working conditions by helping workers realise their fundamental rights such as freedom of association and collective bargaining,” Nishimoto said.
Nishimoto was speaking at a National Tripartite Consultation on Strengthening Social Dialogue and Industrial Relations in Bangladesh organized by the ILO in Dhaka. The event was backed by the governments of Denmark and Norway.
The ILO organised the event to familiarise itself with the views and input from representatives of government, employers, workers organisations and development partners on proposed new ILO initiatives to further advance workplace cooperation and industrial relations in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh’s minister of state for labour and employment Mujibul Haque Chunnu attended the consultation.
Nishimoto explained that for ILO, social dialogue included all types of negotiation, consultation and exchange of information between, or among, representatives of governments, employers and workers on issues of common interest.
“It is in the very real interests of both workers and businesses to have robust social dialogue at both enterprise and sectoral level,” she said.