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Bangla labour welfare fund not receiving expected deposits
24 Jul '18
2 min read
Bangladesh’s central workers’ welfare fund for the readymade garments (RMG) sector is not receiving the expected deposits, as a number of factories, including those from the export processing zones (EPZs), refrain from contributing, according to labour ministry officials. The fund received Tk100 crore in the last two fiscals—Tk47.68 crore less than what was expected.
The government started collecting 0.03 per cent of freight on board prices from the RMG factory owners on July 1, 2016 for the fund.
According to AMM Anisul Awal, director general of the Bangladesh Labour Welfare Foundation Fund, at least Tk20-22 crore less was received every fiscal than the legally binding amount per year as lien banks of the export-oriented garment companies didn’t properly deduct the amount meant for the fund from exporters.
On May 29, the country’s central bank asked all banks to ensure deduction of 0.03 per cent of the encashed export value from the export-oriented RMG factories for the fund.
The factories affiliated to Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) will contribute to the central fund and not the factories located in the EPZs, a top English-language newspaper in the country quoted Nazma binte Alamgir, general manager (public relations) with the Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA), as saying.
Laws for the factories located inside and outside the EPZs were completely different, she clarified.
BEPZA factories do not contribute to the central fund and never receive any benefit from the fund as the authority has its own fund for the workers’ welfare, Nazma added. (DS)
The government started collecting 0.03 per cent of freight on board prices from the RMG factory owners on July 1, 2016 for the fund.
According to AMM Anisul Awal, director general of the Bangladesh Labour Welfare Foundation Fund, at least Tk20-22 crore less was received every fiscal than the legally binding amount per year as lien banks of the export-oriented garment companies didn’t properly deduct the amount meant for the fund from exporters.
On May 29, the country’s central bank asked all banks to ensure deduction of 0.03 per cent of the encashed export value from the export-oriented RMG factories for the fund.
The factories affiliated to Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) will contribute to the central fund and not the factories located in the EPZs, a top English-language newspaper in the country quoted Nazma binte Alamgir, general manager (public relations) with the Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA), as saying.
Laws for the factories located inside and outside the EPZs were completely different, she clarified.
BEPZA factories do not contribute to the central fund and never receive any benefit from the fund as the authority has its own fund for the workers’ welfare, Nazma added. (DS)
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