International Labour Organisation (ILO) and International Finance Corporation (IFC) have launched a training scheme for the upliftment of female garment workers in Bangladesh garment industry.
The Gender Equality and Returns (GEAR) initiative was introduced on International Women’s Day. It will support women in supervisory roles in Bangladesh garment industry.
“I would slowly but surely like to rise from my current position as a supervisor to a line-chief, then an Assistant Production Manager and finally become a Production Manager,” a garment worker said.
Around 150 female garment workers have been trained under the GEAR initiative. 58 of the trained workers are now in supervisory roles.
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As per a survey, the GEAR-trained employees noted a 39 percent surge in their wages.
The aim is now to train 700 female Bangladesh garment workers and their managers in 70 factories and help them grow.
It is pertinent to mention here that 80 percent of line-operators are women. However, 19 out of 20 line-supervisors are male.
“Gender equality and gender empowerment was one of the core founding principles of the ILO in 1919. 100 years on and this is still central to our work. But much more needs to be done in advancing gender diversity, not just in the RMG sector but in every sector,” Tuomo Poutiainen, Country Director, ILO Bangladesh, underlined.
