Social Europe

  • EU Forward Project
  • YouTube
  • Podcast
  • Books
  • Newsletter
  • Membership

Industrialisation And Female Empowerment: Evidence From The Bangladeshi Garments Sector

Filippo Sebastio 11th November 2014

Filippo Sebastio

Filippo Sebastio

Gender empowerment and Equality in the Ready Made Garment (RMG) sector

A slew of industrial accidents such as the Tazreen factory fire and the recent collapse of Rana Plaza have cast the Bangladeshi garment industry in a negative light, with international media reporting extensively on the hazardous working conditions.

A fair amount of media attention has focused on the shattered lives of women employees as a result of these fatal accidents, as these women represent the backbone of the textile industry’s workforce. It remains therefore a priority that ongoing improvements of the working conditions, especially in factories used for subcontracting such as Rana Plaza, and efforts to demand fair compensation for the 2500 injured workers and the families of the more than 1100 deceased workers, occupational health and safety conditions are further strengthened.

However, the impact of industrialization on the lives of many women is often not clearly understood by international opinion. Hence, it is important to conduct a comprehensive analysis and consider what policies can actually improve the lives of the large female workforce beyond the necessary improvements with regard to occupational health and safety (OHS) such as international and national building inspections along with OHS trainings for workers and the management.

Gender Empowerment and the Garment Industry

Since the 1980s, RMG was the first industry to provide large-scale employment opportunities to women in Bangladesh, in a country where women traditionally did not work outside their home. Recent research by Professor Rachel Heath (University of Washington) and Professor Mushfiq Mobarak (The International Growth Centre and Yale University) draws attention to the significant benefits of having access to factory jobs on gender empowerment, even beyond the income opportunity, from data spanning thirty years in Bangladesh.

Comparing girls living in areas within commuting distance to a factory to both their brothers and to other girls from villages not within commuting distance, Mobarak and Heath found a systematic effect of proximity to garment factories on the postponement of marriage and childbirth age. These effects were even more striking for girls aged between 12 and 18, where early marriage is more likely to have detrimental effects on a girl’s level of educational achievement and resulting job opportunities.

Analysing retrospective data, Mobarak and Heath find that roughly 14.8 percentage points of the national gain in girls’ enrolment rates over that period, can be attributed to the growth in the garment export industry. The study also highlighted how the proximity to garment factories is associated with a reduced gender-education gap.

Such evidence sheds some light on how the RMG sector has contributed to female empowerment across and within Bangladeshi households. As factories open up and economic opportunities reach villages, households decide to invest in the education of daughters, due to the perceived increase in returns from schooling in the labour market.

Furthermore, as girls find jobs in the garment sector, they tend to postpone marriage and childbirth. Strikingly, the effect of taking up a job in the garment sector on the postponement of marriage and childbirth tends to be larger in the households where women had no previous experience of work outside of home.

Gender Equality in the Factories

Whereas a job in the RMG sector has therefore contributed to the empowerment of women who had previously been bound to work in their household, empowerment often stops when it comes to the equality of opportunities within RMG factories in Bangladesh. From data collected within factories, 4 out of every 5 production line workers are female, whilst just over 1 in 20 supervisors is a woman. If indeed workers were promoted on the basis of merit, this would mean that currently 95 percent of the managerial talent in factories emerges from 20 percent of the workforce. This begs the question as to whether it is efficient for factory owners not to invest in women, whilst the industry suffers from a scarcity of skilled workers.

Recent research has also brought to light how gender discrimination affects the lives of the female operators and the potential repercussions on the efficiency in the sector. Professors Christopher Woodruff and Rocco Macchiavello (The International Growth Centre and the University of Warwick) have evaluated a training program that trains female sewing machine operators to become line supervisors. The study investigates the impact of skill investment on female workers versus male participants and the effectiveness of female trainees who are subsequently promoted to supervisory roles. According to the study, vocational training has positive effects on gender equality as more than half of the female trainees were promoted after receiving the training.

Different experiment setups that Woodruff and Macchiavello explored suggested that after being trained, female trainees are as much or even more effective than male supervisors and that there are no differences between male and female trainees with regards to line-level efficiency, absenteeism or quality.

However, their research also draws attention to the predominant bias against women taking on the role of supervisors. Promotion rates for the female trainees in their experiment proved to be significantly lower than for male trainees and hints of resistance to the promotion of female operators were detected amongst male colleagues. Hence there is significant evidence that traditional gender roles perpetuate employment structures within factories and limits the career prospects of women entering the sector as line operators.

Three quarters of the workforce will remain unskilled without adequate training, further perpetuating a vicious cycle within factories. Due to the gender bias within factories, women do not invest in the skills required to become supervisors, as they do not expect to have opportunities for career progress. Male employees on the other hand, enter factories with a significantly higher expectation of becoming supervisors. It is not surprising then that women initially require more training en-route to becoming supervisors. With weaker career prospects, women are also likely to leave when offered better opportunities elsewhere. Consequently, garment factories face high turnover rates, leading to large costs in terms of resource and efficiency losses. A story emerges then of an industry that has fuelled economic growth in Bangladesh, yet that has been unable to exploit its full potential because gender inequality still persists.

The way forward

Mushfiq and Heath claim that the expansion of the garment industry had a far bigger role to play in increasing female educational attainment and decreasing early marriages and fertility rates during the 20-year period than most other educational policies. Mubarak and Heath’s research also shows how international boycotts on trade in garments with Bangladesh, as a response to poor and unsafe working conditions, have the potential to do more harm than good to women in Bangladesh. Since the expansion of the industry has largely contributed to the emancipation of adolescent girls, a sudden halt would put these gains at risk. This reinforces the importance of garment associations, trade unions and factory management establishing health and safety measures to ensure a safe and sustainable RMG industry.

Also, whilst it is the responsibility of government, factory owners and international brands to do everything in their power to guarantee decent and safe working conditions within the factories, more actions can be taken. In fact, international brands that outsource production to Bangladesh could also benefit from encouraging garment business associations to invest in their female operators. Bangladesh has long suffered from a negative reputation due to the working conditions in factories. By investing in social programs such as female training, international brands could together restore the deteriorated image of “Made in Bangladesh” garments and increase their appeal amongst concerned consumers.

Also, while the industry has rewarded girls that have had access to more job opportunities, factory management has failed to provide equal opportunities and the resulting career development to female workers, as compared to men. These measures would not be sustainable if garment associations and the government of Bangladesh do not work closely to change the cultural norms inside factories. Social awareness programs on traditional and social media aid in breaking down the barriers to gender equality within factories. Within garment workers’ unions, perceptions towards female workers also need to progress. Male workers need to view their female counterparts as less of a threat and more of a resource that should be highly regarded, in order to improve efficiency within this key industry in Bangladesh.

Filippo Sebastio

Filippo Sebastio is an International Growth Centre (IGC) economist in Bangladesh. The IGC aims to promote sustainable growth in developing countries by providing demand-led policy advice based on frontier research.

Harvard University Press Advertisement

Social Europe Ad - Promoting European social policies

We need your help.

Support Social Europe for less than €5 per month and help keep our content freely accessible to everyone. Your support empowers independent publishing and drives the conversations that matter. Thank you very much!

Social Europe Membership

Click here to become a member

Most Recent Articles

u421983467e464b43d2 1 Why European Security and Sovereignty Depend on Its Digital SectorMariana Mazzucato
u42198346c3fba71fa474 0 As Temperatures Rise, European Workers Face a Looming ThreatMarouane Laabbas-el-Guennouni
u42198346741 4727 89fd 94e15c3ad1d4 3 Europe Must Prepare for Security Without AmericaAlmut Möller
6ybe7j6ybe Why Real Democracy Needs Conflict, Not ConsensusJustus Seuferle
u4219837 46fc 46e5 a3c1 4f548d13b084 2 Europe’s Bid for Autonomy: The Euro’s Evolving Global RoleGuido Montani

Most Popular Articles

u4219834647f 0894ae7ca865 3 Europe’s Businesses Face a Quiet Takeover as US Investors CapitaliseTej Gonza and Timothée Duverger
u4219834674930082ba55 0 Portugal’s Political Earthquake: Centrist Grip Crumbles, Right AscendsEmanuel Ferreira
u421983467e58be8 81f2 4326 80f2 d452cfe9031e 1 “The Universities Are the Enemy”: Why Europe Must Act NowBartosz Rydliński
u42198346761805ea24 2 Trump’s ‘Golden Era’ Fades as European Allies Face Harsh New RealityFerenc Németh and Peter Kreko
startupsgovernment e1744799195663 Governments Are Not StartupsMariana Mazzucato
u421986cbef 2549 4e0c b6c4 b5bb01362b52 0 American SuicideJoschka Fischer
u42198346769d6584 1580 41fe 8c7d 3b9398aa5ec5 1 Why Trump Keeps Winning: The Truth No One AdmitsBo Rothstein
u421983467 a350a084 b098 4970 9834 739dc11b73a5 1 America Is About to Become the Next BrexitJ Bradford DeLong
u4219834676ba1b3a2 b4e1 4c79 960b 6770c60533fa 1 The End of the ‘West’ and Europe’s FutureGuillaume Duval
u421983462e c2ec 4dd2 90a4 b9cfb6856465 1 The Transatlantic Alliance Is Dying—What Comes Next for Europe?Frank Hoffer

ETUI advertisement

HESA Magazine Cover

With a comprehensive set of relevant indicators, presented in 85 graphs and tables, the 2025 Benchmarking Working Europe report examines how EU policies can reconcile economic, social and environmental goals to ensure long-term competitiveness. Considered a key reference, this publication is an invaluable resource for supporting European social dialogue.

DOWNLOAD HERE

Eurofound advertisement

Ageing workforce
The evolution of working conditions in Europe

This episode of Eurofound Talks examines the evolving landscape of European working conditions, situated at the nexus of profound technological transformation.

Mary McCaughey speaks with Barbara Gerstenberger, Eurofound's Head of Unit for Working Life, who leverages insights from the 35-year history of the European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS).

Listen to the episode for free. Also make sure to subscribe to Eurofound Talks so you don’t miss an episode!

LISTEN NOW

Foundation for European Progressive Studies Advertisement

Spring Issues

The Spring issue of The Progressive Post is out!


Since President Trump’s inauguration, the US – hitherto the cornerstone of Western security – is destabilising the world order it helped to build. The US security umbrella is apparently closing on Europe, Ukraine finds itself less and less protected, and the traditional defender of free trade is now shutting the door to foreign goods, sending stock markets on a rollercoaster. How will the European Union respond to this dramatic landscape change? .


Among this issue’s highlights, we discuss European defence strategies, assess how the US president's recent announcements will impact international trade and explore the risks  and opportunities that algorithms pose for workers.


READ THE MAGAZINE

Hans Böckler Stiftung Advertisement

WSI Report

WSI Minimum Wage Report 2025

The trend towards significant nominal minimum wage increases is continuing this year. In view of falling inflation rates, this translates into a sizeable increase in purchasing power for minimum wage earners in most European countries. The background to this is the implementation of the European Minimum Wage Directive, which has led to a reorientation of minimum wage policy in many countries and is thus boosting the dynamics of minimum wages. Most EU countries are now following the reference values for adequate minimum wages enshrined in the directive, which are 60% of the median wage or 50 % of the average wage. However, for Germany, a structural increase is still necessary to make progress towards an adequate minimum wage.

DOWNLOAD HERE

S&D Group in the European Parliament advertisement

Cohesion Policy

S&D Position Paper on Cohesion Policy post-2027: a resilient future for European territorial equity

Cohesion Policy aims to promote harmonious development and reduce economic, social and territorial disparities between the regions of the Union, and the backwardness of the least favoured regions with a particular focus on rural areas, areas affected by industrial transition and regions suffering from severe and permanent natural or demographic handicaps, such as outermost regions, regions with very low population density, islands, cross-border and mountain regions.

READ THE FULL POSITION PAPER HERE

Social Europe

Our Mission

Team

Article Submission

Advertisements

Membership

Social Europe Archives

Themes Archive

Politics Archive

Economy Archive

Society Archive

Ecology Archive

Miscellaneous

RSS Feed

Legal Disclosure

Privacy Policy

Copyright

Social Europe ISSN 2628-7641