Global Worker Dialogue

07/13/2023

This week, workers respond to two questions regarding their future in the garment industry: Do you wish to remain a garment worker for the rest of your career? And, do you believe that the Worker Diaries project can help to improve the garment industry for workers in the long run? About half of respondents say that they wish to remain garment workers, while 33% of respondents say that they do not. The remaining 16% say they feel neutral. For the following question, the overwhelming majority (87%) of respondents report that they do believe the Garment Worker Diaries project can help to improve the industry for the benefit of workers in the future. 12% of respondents feel neutral about that possibility and 2% disagree or feel discouraged.

will be taking a break for a while, which is why the team at MFO felt that these responses about workers' outlooks on the future were particularly important. We hope that you will continue to consider the stories and information garment workers have shared through . We thank you for your support!

Note: the quotes in the posts are not from the workers in the photos, but from different workers.

06/01/2023

This week in , garment workers in Bangladesh share their day-to-day highlights, providing an intimate look into their daily routines. All respondents discuss activities outside of the workplace as their favorite parts of their day, frequently mentioning times of rest, prayer, and conversation with family. Additionally, we asked workers how they would use extra income if their pay were to increase. Many respondents said they would save money for their children, particularly for their education. A few respondents mention that they would save money for their daughters' marriages.

If you have a question for the garment workers, there are three ways to ask it: 1) direct message us 2) write in the post comments, or 3) send an email to [email protected].

Note: the quotes in the posts are not from the workers in the photos, but from different workers.

04/06/2023

This week, reveals respondents' favorite and least favorite aspects of working in the garment industry. Generally, workers feel positively about the accessibility of employment in the industry for women and people without many years of formal education. Another asset of the job respondents discuss is the solidarity they form with coworkers as they collaborate in tight working conditions and under immense pressure. One respondent also touches on the importance of the garment industry for Bangladesh's economy, and recognizes he plays a part in its success. Respondents also disclose, however, that they feel easily replaceable, disrespected both by society as well as by superiors within the factory- with many workers citing verbal abuse- and that their demanding workload keeps them from spending time with their families. Several respondents also list dirty working conditions as their least favorite aspect of the job.

If you have a question for the garment workers, there are three ways to ask it: 1) direct message us 2) write in the post comments, or 3) send an email to [email protected].

Note: the quotes in the posts are not from the workers in the photos, but from different workers.

03/08/2023

This week, garment workers share with what the Garment Worker Diaries survey means to them. 99% of respondents reported that they liked participating in the survey, citing that they learned how to better keep track of their finances and that they felt heard and acknowledged because of it, among other reasons. When asked how important they felt that sharing stories of their experiences and working conditions was, 94% of respondents said at least slightly important.

If you have a question for the garment workers, there are three ways to ask it: 1) direct message us 2) write in the post comments, or 3) send an email to [email protected].

Note: the quotes in the posts are not from the workers in the photos, but from different workers.

03/02/2023

This week's Garment Worker Diaries blog is an update on the project in Bangladesh through the end of 2022: https://workerdiaries.org/garment-worker-diaries-update-in-bangladesh-through-december-2022/

December of that year marked 33 straight months of data collection in Bangladesh, beginning with the onset of COVID-19 in April 2020. Throughout that time period, garment workers kept showing up at their factories, sometimes working as much as 295 hours per month.

We did not include as many core questions in our weekly surveys in the fall of 2022, but in turn we were also able to ask garment workers more special (one-time) questions. In the coming weeks and months we look forward to sharing some of those special questions results with you in our series, which you can find posted across all of our social media platforms, as well as on our website's designated page (https://workerdiaries.org/open-diaries/).

02/23/2023

Beginning in mid-2022 we began using data from the Garment Worker Diaries study in Bangladesh to help us calculate the wage a garment worker living there would have to earn to lead a decent life. This living wage range refers not only to the physical, mental and social nourishment a decent wage provides, but also to the fact that the wage calculation itself could be compared to a living, breathing phenomenon.

In this week's Garment Worker Diaries blog, we discuss why we believe a living wage range needs to be updated from time to time, and for the calculations used to determine that range to also be subject to update and refinement when necessary: https://workerdiaries.org/living-wage-calculation-methodology/

Despite the clothing itself, wages are one of the most tangible products of garment workers' labor, and something they actually get to take home with them. Wages are a part of workers' daily lives, and those wages' ability to sustain life in a decent manner should never be taken for granted.

02/09/2023

In this week's Garment Worker Diaries blog we discuss the answers to questions workers in Bangladesh answered for us and South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (SANEM) regarding dangers in the workplace, both occupational and interpersonal: https://workerdiaries.org/workplace-hazards-and-abuse/

The answers suggest there are opportunities to improve workers' confidence regarding how to properly respond to certain workplace accidents, and also in the way workers and management communicate about such safety issues. And regarding certain kinds of abusive interactions between workers, it is important to note that women were somewhat more likely to report an abusive encounter than men and to report that such encounters occur more frequently. Men were also far more likely than women to be identified as the person committing the abuse.

01/19/2023

This week's Garment Worker Diaries blog is the 4th and final post in a series guest-written by our partner in Bangladesh, South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (SANEM): https://workerdiaries.org/towards-a-sustainable-growth-of-the-rmg-sector-of-bangladesh/

The series, and this blog in particular, broadly focus on the challenges the ready-made garment industry in Bangladesh faces, and the opportunities available there to propel the industry, and garment workers themselves, into sustainably competitive futures. By sustainable, we of course mean that workers, their environments, and their skill sets are to be cultivated and allowed to flourish, rather than exploited and left to wither.

This blog can also be read in Bangla via a link in the English-language version.

This week’s Garment Worker Diaries blog is the final post in a series of blogs which have focused narrowly on Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence, CSDD compliance and worker well-being, and more broadly on the future of the RMG industry in Bangladesh. Each blog post has been guest-written by ou...

01/11/2023

This week's Garment Worker Diaries blog, again guest-written by our partner South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (SANEM), focuses on perhaps the most important aspect of the RMG industry's mandate to comply with new Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence directives being formulated in areas such as the European Union: worker well-being.

https://workerdiaries.org/well-being-of-the-rmg-workers-in-bangladesh-some-key-issues/

This 3rd blog picks up where SANEM's previous two blogs (which you can read here and here) left off, which was with a discussion of what the new CSDD directives mean for Bangladesh, and how the RMG industry there can evolve to ensure that workers are seen as integral components of the industry's overall health.

A Bangla-language version of the blog is also available within the English language post.

As with our two previous blog posts, this week’s Garment Worker Diaries blog has been guest-written by our long-time partner in the field in Bangladesh, the South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (SANEM). SANEM’s prior two blogs focused on the European Union’s Human Rights and Environmental ...

12/20/2022

This week's Garment Worker Diaries blog post discusses how Bangladesh's ready-made garment sector might best comply with the European Union's Human Rights and Due Diligence (HREDD) directives (the draft of EU Directive on Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence, CSDD). It is a continuation of last week's blog post and it has also been written by our collaborators at South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (SANEM). As with last week's post, where the macro-level content was regulatory and broad in scope, the inherent admission is simple and powerful, and it is that the well-being of workers matters: https://workerdiaries.org/complying-with-the-eus-hredd-regulations/

This Garment Worker Diaries blog post has been guest-written by our long-time partner in the field in Bangladesh, the South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (SANEM). This is the 2nd blog in a series covering the European Union’s Human Rights and Environmental Due Diligence (HREDD) directives. Th...

12/15/2022

Over the next two months we're happy to be sharing with you a series of Garment Worker Diaries blogs guest-written by our partner in the field, South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (SANEM). For just under five years now MFO and SANEM have been collaborating in Bangladesh. In many ways these blogs are a culmination of where we have been together, and at the same time a glimpse into the future of the RMG industry.

This 1st blog post (https://workerdiaries.org/the-eus-hredd-regulations/) introduces the European Union's Human Rights and Environmental Due Diligence (HREDD) regulations, and discusses the potential impacts of the regulations to the RMG sector in Bangladesh (a Bangla language version of the blog is also available within the post). The 2nd blog post will delve deeper into how the RMG sector in Bangladesh can comply with the HREDD directives. Two further blogs will in turn discuss worker well-being and the sustainability of the RMG sector in Bangladesh.

Each of these blogs has been informed by years' worth of direct conversations with garment workers. And as the well-being of workers' minds, bodies, the environments they live in, and corporate accountability within international supply chains take the lead in due diligence conversations, we hope the value of these direct conversations with workers will only keep increasing.

11/22/2022

This week's Garment Worker Diaries blog post sees us discussing different aspects of well-being with workers in Bangladesh: https://workerdiaries.org/worker-well-being/

We ask respondents to describe any physical and mental exhaustion they might experience at work, as well as their stress and energy levels. We also ask them to talk about more social aspects of well-being, such as respect in the workplace, feelings of financial security, and whether workers feel they have a good work-life balance. We think the insights workers have provided into their inner lives are important and we're happy to be sharing their thoughts with you.