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Kiln owners can exploit the workers so blatantly because this sector, despite being riddled with so many issues affecting the workers, is highly unregulated and, quite surprisingly, was not covered by the minimum wage structure
Published : 01 May 2023, 02:43 AM
Aminbazar area under Savar Upazila in Dhaka is home to several brick kilns, and these kilns employ a good number of day labourers, mostly female, for brick manufacturing.
These labourers work eight hours daily, with two hours of unpaid breaks in between, which means they spend 10 hours a day at their workplace, which has long been considered one of the most demanding and most hazardous jobs available in Bangladesh and a sector which is still plagued by modern-day slavery.
But for Anwara Begum, Sabina Begum and Sufia Begum, all work at Messrs Siddique Brick Field in the area, the risks involved with their jobs come at the bottom of their priority list.
For them, having a job, which comes with constant verbal abuse and sometimes coupled with physical abuse, is at the top of their priority list so that they can keep paying for their necessities.
But are they receiving what they owe?
All three categorically said no while being interviewed by bdnews24.com on Saturday.
“At the end of each day, we are supposed to cover every bit of clay, soil and prepared brick under plastic wrap. Sometimes, it takes hours, but we don’t get paid for any overtime,” Anwara said.
Sufia, who loads coals inside the furnace at the kiln, said that despite being the most challenging job available, it is also highly saturated.
“If I don’t do this, my employers will have no problem filling my position. So, tell me, what option do I have except for this,” she said.
The brick kiln owners set the wage level themselves and hardly ever consider external factors like inflation and market situation, according to workers interviewed for the article.
Some owners even admitted as such.
The brick kiln owners can exploit the workers so blatantly because this sector, despite being riddled with many issues affecting the workers, is highly unregulated and, quite surprisingly, was not covered by the minimum wage structure.
“The government has brought workers from 44 sectors under the minimum wage structure. Brick kiln workers are not covered by it,” said Raisa Afroz, secretary of the Minimum Wages Board.
However, according to media reports, the Bangladesh government plans to include the sector under the minimum wage structure as soon as possible.
SO, HOW MUCH DO THE WORKERS RECEIVE?
Abu Nahid, the manager at the Siddique Brick Field in Aminbazar, said they have headhunters on their payscale who bring in inexperienced people so they can be paid at a lower rate.
There is also an interesting advance payment system.
“Let's say some of them newbies require Tk 30,000 for some specific purposes. We employ them at a rate for a specific period so that they can save the targeted fund,” he said.
There are around 6500 brick kilns across the country, according to Abu Bakar, former secretary general of the Bangladesh Brick Manufacturing Owners Association, or BBMOA.
Although he conceded that the prices of bricks have shot up to 40 per cent in the last two years, the same can not be said about the workers’ wages.
“It depends on how skilled the workers are. A skilled labourer, who used to get around Tk 400 a day, is now getting around Tk 600 per day, while an inexperienced teenager, who used to get Tk 250 a day, is getting around Tk 500 a day.”
However, wage data collected from the workers did match with data provided by Abu Bakar.
According to workers, in the last two years, their daily wages have hardly increased to Tk 100 maximum to adjust the inflation, up to 11 to 22 per cent.
GENDER PAY GAP
Another issue which is most visible in brick kilns is the gender pay gap.
Even the most experienced female worker gets at least Tk 50 less from the newly minted so-called ‘experienced’ male day labourers at a brick kiln.
While some elderly female workers like Anwara accepted it as a norm, younger female workers like Sabina found it unacceptable.
“If I don’t do my job, I will not get paid. Period. I have set a target of tasks every day. Most of my male colleagues do the same. But I get paid less than them,” she said.
bdnews24.com asked Golamur Rahman, foreman of Anwara, Sabina and Sufiya, why the female workers are paid less.
He responded: “Male workers can carry much more weight than their female colleagues and can work without breaks. The female workers can’t do that; they need breaks after every heavy task.”
Naripokkho’s founding member Shireen Huq said she does not find the gender disparity surprising, as women have been suppressed in every sector for decades with such baseless arguments.
“Female workers at such unregulated workplaces are not even considered human because they just don’t want to pay them equally,” she said.
WHAT CAN BE DONE FOR THESE WORKERS?
Bangladesh Construction Workers' Union General Secretary Abdur Razzak said they were gearing up to push the agendas for these brick kilns workers when the pandemic hit Bangladesh.
“Since then, the efforts went downhill. But we hope to push it again soon,” he said.
Begum Monnujan Sufian, state minister for labour and employment, confirmed that Bangladesh’s labour law and wage structure do not have any disparity based on gender.
“A male and female labourer at the same level must receive equal wages,” she said.
She also encouraged the aggrieved parties to lodge complaints with the concerned authorities so that the government could tackle them.
“Unless we [the government] are told about specific cases, we can’t take random actions,” she said.
Naripokkho’s Shireen said that to reform the gender disparity in wages, an extensive awareness campaign is a must.
“A handful of people can not bring reform. Society needs to stand against such disparity; hence an awareness campaign is a must, along with strict supervision and regulation,” she said.
[Writing in English by Adil Mahmood]
