EPZs and how about a Hartal Act for Bangladesh?

Given the facts that an industrial democracy is yet to take firm roots in the development dimension of Bangladesh, that the country can no longer afford to postpone the creation of wholesome conditions for an imminent WTO regime, and that the fear of risks associated with the anticipated trade union activities in the EPZs is higher particularly among the inve stors, one suggestion is that the country allow trade union activities in the EPZs initially on a fixed term basis for a period of two years. This would afford the investors, the government and others an opportunity to monitor and evaluate the effects of trade unionism in the EPZs during the above period. The outcome of the evaluation and the lessons learned could assist the government and others in implementing additional institutional, operational and other measures, as required. Alternatively, accountability of the EPZ unions in production and other areas should be established and closely monitored for ensuring pertinent targets.

For an optimal positive return from the activities in the EPZs, the country should ensure an efficient and effective use of:

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1. antidotes for preventing production and productivity losses, unfair labour practices on the part of the employers or the workers, and other complications or infractions arising out of and in the course of exercising the rights by all concerned; and

2. industrial relations methods and tools, such as a more professional handling of industrial disputes; a continually reliable and result-generative labour inspection regime; alternative dispute resolutions; and arbitrations.

Bangladesh would need to formulate and implement a labour-market policy composite involving such constituents as national interest, human rights, trade unionism and productivity for facilitating, among others and on a continuing basis, higher savings for, and satisfaction of, all concerned. The policy composite could be useful in creating a basis for, say, modifying or changing relevant laws of the land. For more customer oriented, fair, and just-in-time services, the country's labour inspection machinery should be overhauled, corruption eliminated, bureaucratic barriers removed, and capacities for service delivery enhanced.

The existing opportunities for workers education and union leadership training -- particularly, for female workers and female trade union leaders -- need to be enhanced in quantitative and qualitative terms and on a priority basis. The capacities of both government institutions (such as the Industrial Relations Institute) and private sector institutions (such as the Institute of Personnel Management (IPM)) currently involved in providing education and training in industrial relations to Bangladeshis should be improved. The competencies of industrial relations professionals engaged in Bangladeshi mills, factories and other organizations should be enhanced by improving their opportunities for obtaining professional education and training in the area of industrial relations.

In Bangladeshi society, there still exists a great deal of love and acceptance for government accredited diplomas and degrees. The government of Bangladesh may, in this respect, consider the granting of statuary recognitions to the graduate and the post graduate diplomas awarded in human resources management by in-country institutes like, the IPM. The recognition should, however, be contingent upon the fulfillment of certain quality criteria and other pertinent requirements (by the institutes) as deemed fit by the government.

A decision to allow trade unionism in the EPZs would enhance the accountability of the EPZ workers and their union leaders manifold. Because an improper exercise of the rights by them could lead inter alia to an eventual marginalization of the FDI flow into the country, thus affecting not only the EPZ workers and their families, but Bangladeshis as a whole, either directly or indirectly (or both). The media and other development partners should be able to inform or educate (or both) the EPZ workers regarding their obligations in pertinent areas and the consequences thereof.

The investors should support the effort of Bangladesh towards developing an investment climate in which the relationship between the employers and the workers would be based on mutual respect, tolerance, fairness and justice; the main thrusts of that relationship would be human rights, productivity, innovations, inventions, fair compensations and rewards for good work; and the employers would at least be reasonably sensitive to workers' welfare and their legitimate concerns and grievances. As part of their social obligations, the investors should assist the country -- in the development of a work culture that could assist the Bangladeshi work force in the continuous internalization of the market challenges of the 21st century and in the promotion of environment friendly industrial and commercial activities in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh may elect to establish an investment promotion forum comprising the representatives of the political parties, the EPZ workers, the investors including the chambers (where applicable), civil society, the media, relevant government ministries, the donors, the UN organizations such as ILO, for promoting broad based dialogues, consultations and feedback in the pursuit of developing influential partnerships in the area of investment promotion. Further, the forum could work as an interphase (used in an engineering sense) when it comes to efforts towards bridging the gap between expectations and outcomes concerning economic emancipation of Bangladesh and Bangladeshis. The chambers of commerce and industries would have a catalytic role in promoting the constituency of the forum. For complementing and supplementing the forum's investment promotion effort, Bangladesh may explore the feasibility of developing financial service businesses in the country.

Finally, it is expected the EPZ workers would be able to exercise the rights in the near future in a constructive manner.

In Bangladesh, hartals have so far been used as a handy tool by political parties and others in their effort towards creating pressure on a sitting government or an entity for advancing party agendas or group demands, or other things, as applicable. The hartal has, by now, assumed a number of dimensions in terms of the magnitude of its cause, effect and causality; the profiles of those who call the hartal; and the support level for the hartal, to mention a few. As a result, Bangladeshis are familiar with what I would call, for example, deca hartals, hecto hartals, mega hartals and giga hartals depending on the power of each of the hartals on a factor of 10 (yet to be quantified), determined hypothetically on the basis of several parameters including their places of occurrence at local, district, national and other levels.

The news, commentaries, opinions and other forms of hartal related expressions have been a hot media subject. Despite the fact that the hartal has so far led to loss of human life, damage to property and other anti-people and anti-development consequences, that its purposes have become stereotyped due perhaps to overuse or thematic limitations (hartal in support of poverty alleviation?) and that its outcomes (based on an approximation) have brought only a few tangible benefits for Bangladeshis, the reality is, the hartal still exists in Bangladesh and the people's power is yet to be powerful to fight out the hartal from the country's soil. During the AL government in the immediate past, the issue of hartal even went to highest court of the land.

In view of the above and other factors concerning the hartal, Bangladesh may explore the possibility of enacting a Hartal Act for regulating hartals and their effect on the well-being of the country. The act should contain inter alia: a) definitions of such terms as hartal, group, and political party; b) the scope of hartal; c) the conditions (to be met by a political party or parties) prior to the declaration of a hartal. The conditions may include inter alia referrals to the ombudsman (when applicable) and parliamentary interventions; d) the hartal notice; e) the conditions concerning leading and conducting hartals; f) the list of unfair practices on the part of those who would be involved in hartals; g) the hartal liabilities; h) the punishment clause; i) the jurisdictions of the special court, if constituted, for trying offences under the act and j) the appeal process. At the formulation stage of the act, one of the challenges would to be strike a right balance between the human rights aspect of hartals and the implications of hartals on the national interest and image.