Automation brings both prospects and risks to Bangladesh’s apparel industry

As many as 120 machines are knitting sweaters round the clock in a huge airconditioned room with a handful of workers inputting instructions and designs into computers.

Thanks to automation, the apparel plant of Softex Sweater Industries at Savar on the outskirts of the Bangladesh capital Dhaka reduced the number of workers to 22 from 700 in the knitting unit.

The plant needs fewer workers as they just sort the items manufactured by the machines, according to the company’s Head of Operations Tahzeeb Ul Gani Shahjee.

“You only need to feed designs and measurements into the machines. One worker can look after five machines at a time. The machines do the basic knitting while the workers only sort the products,” he told bdnews24.com.

Linking, trimming, washing and ironing are done by workers but fabrics are knitted solely by 192 automatic machines imported from Germany and China.

It is now producing more sweaters, but with half the 3,500-member workforce deployed earlier. Productivity has also increased fivefold.

Akidul Islam, who heads the factory’s human resource department, said they were recruiting the workers who can operate both computers and the machines needed for producing garments.

This is how the garment industry of Bangladesh, which is popular for its cheap labour, is adopting robotics and automation to speed up production.

Automation means less dependency on workers and fewer risks of labour unrest, factory owners said.

Concerns over the possibilities of hundreds of thousands of workers losing their jobs are growing in the industry that employs about four million workers. There is no official data on how many garment workers have lost jobs to automation.

While worries over job cuts are growing, both employers and workers are welcoming the new technologies.

People have recommended technological training for the workers and creation of jobs in other industrial sectors.

OWNERS KEEN AUTOMATION

The larger apparel factories in Bangladesh are ahead in automation. Softex Sweater is a pioneer in the field, Managing Director Selim Rezwan believes.

“There is no alternative to automation if someone wants to remain in the market now,” said Rezwan, a director of garment industry entrepreneurs’ body BGMEA.

“Automation helps us reduce dependency on workers while productivity is increasing as well,” he said.

“Orders are dropping, so are the prices globally. On the other hand, labour cost is increasing. So, robot technology is the demand of the time.”

Falling behind in automation will put the business at risk in the future, Denim Expert Managing Director Mostafiz Uddin believes.

“Bangladesh is still in the mid-level of automation while European countries, China and Pakistan have progressed much. We must go for automation to retain capacity considering the increasing labour costs and growing competition,” he said.

WORKERS DO NOT OPPOSE

Garment workers in Bangladesh often stage street protests and the protesters sometimes clash with police while the workers’ rights groups continue demonstration against irregularities, such as layoff, factory shutdown and delayed pay. But they seem to have accepted the fact that automation is the way forward.

Kazi Ruhul Amin, the executive president of Garment Workers’ Trade Union Centre, said, “The use of robot technology in manufacturing is growing. Factory-based employment is dropping for this. Workers are switching their jobs. Everybody must accept the reality.”

He pointed out another concern. “The remaining workers of the automated factories are working extra hours. Many are accepting it because they do not need to give much labour to support the machines.”

He believes it will be possible to accommodate more workers if the factories operate three eight-hour shifts instead of 12 hours for two shifts a day.

ILO SEES RISKS

Bangladesh is among the countries where unskilled workers are at the risk of losing jobs to automation, according to Tuomo Poutiainen, the International Labour Organisation’s country director.

“Hundreds of thousands of unskilled workers are at the risk of losing their jobs to automation in Bangladesh. The field for highly skilled workers, however, will expand. As a rising economy, Bangladesh’s huge market of unskilled and less educated workers is truly at risk.”

“Though the ILO emphasises innovation of technology to reduce manual labour, it expresses worries over the risk of workers losing jobs to automation as well,” Poutiainen said.

“To meet the demand for technology, the ILO prioritises technology controlled by humans.”

PLANS NEEDED

BGMEA President Rubana Huq also favours automation. She recommends finding alternative employment for the workers who are losing jobs to automation.

“Automation is the reality and essential now. We must start thinking about alternative jobs for our workers,” she said.

 

The Mohammadi Group boss thinks Bangladesh can work to create an international market of handmade garments through branding to reduce the risks stemming from automation.

Labour leader Ruhul Amin also thinks the government must assist in tackling the hit on the workers due to automation.

“Automation will bring transformation. The government must pay attention to creating new jobs to cope with the change. Besides this, skills development among the workers will be needed to prepare them for the modern labour market.”