BGMEA takes action against Bangladesh factories

In the aftermath of the Bangladesh clothing factory that collapsed in April, it took several months for leading global brands like Gap and Walmart to agree on an initiative to ensure security and safety for the thousands of workers.

Since then, the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) promised to ensure these safety agreements are put into action. As it turns out, many Bangladesh factories have not been cooperative and the Association is taking action against nearly 180 factories which have failed to provide it with documentation it asked for in the wake of the Rana Plaza building collapse in April.

Bangladesh factories not cooperative with documentation

The BGMEA said it will stop serving the factories after they failed to provide documentation that includes structural designs of the buildings, the Financial Express reported.

The deadline for submitting the documents, which also include load-bearing capacity and soil test reports of their buildings, had already been extended with a later deadline of June 15 set after requests from several manufacturers. The original submission date had been May 30.

"After the extended deadline, the BGMEA is not issuing any service including utilisation declaration to about 180 factories as they are yet to submit any of the documents, including the group insurance policy document," Md Shahidullah Azim, vice-president of the BGMEA, told the newspaper.

The BGMEA is the apex trade body that represents the export oriented woven, knit and sweater garment manufacturers and exporters of the country. Readymade Garment (RMG) is the leading sector of Bangladesh in terms of employment, production and foreign exchange earning. Readymade garment (RMG) alone earned about 78 percent of the yearly foreign exchange earning of the country. About 4 million people are employed in the garment sector.

Image: Savar building collapse