The report of Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) also draws attention to the rising inflation eating up a significant portion of the workers' income.

Whereas monthly earnings of the male workers increased 4.7 percent, the female workers' income decreased 0.86 percent during the third quarter of the current fiscal year.

However, as per daily income basis the earnings of female labourers rose 14.37 percent and interestingly, income of male labourers dropped 9.83 percent.

The findings came from a BBS survey titled "Quarterly Wage Rate Survey - May 2007," first of its kind in Bangladesh. These will be used for determining changes in real wages or earnings of the non-farm workers and to assess the situation in the country's labour market.

The report also shows that although the earnings of the workers in different types of occupations have increased, inflation has gobbled up 44 percent of the earnings.

A male worker, who was paid Tk 100 in first quarter of the current fiscal, is now earning Tk 104.70, but due to inflation, his real earnings have declined to Tk 59.86, the report says.

Meanwhile, each female worker's present income in Tk 99.14, which was Tk 100 in the first quarter of the current fiscal. The inflation has brought more miseries to her as her real income is reduced to Tk. 56.68.

The BBS survey was conducted among the workers of 35 non-farm industry groups in six metropolitan cities and peripherals in November 2006 and March 2007. It was limited just to the workers level and high-paid executives were excluded.

According to the survey, among all non-farm workers, male glass production machine operators earn the highest, Tk 11,929 per month while the second highest income was Tk10,732 of a cashier from banking sector. The third highest income group in the non-farm sector was railway guard, who earns Tk 9,705 monthly.

The male workers employed at the tobacco leaf mixing industry stood at the lowest level of the monthly income, earning only Tk 1,391, according to the survey.

The BBS survey revealed that the highest wage for the male workers in readymade garment sector is Tk 5,663 and the lowest is Tk 1,933 per month. In case of female workers, the highest wage is Tk 5,400 and lowest is Tk1,642.

The report observes that the male workers' earnings in the sector increased 2.79 percent while earnings of female workers increased 3.51 percent. The report also says that of the total non-farm workers, 12.48 percent males along with 34.02 percent females, work in the readymade garment sector.

According to the survey, in most of the sectors among the BBS estimated 183 occupations, female workers are paid less than their male counterparts in the same job.

There are, however, some exceptions.

In a few occupations like lawyer assistant, a female receives more than a male, earning Tk 7,000, whereas a male gets Tk 5,976 per month. In case of doctor's assistant, female workers are paid Tk 6,555, while the males earns Tk 5,638.

The BBS report shows that the earnings of ceramic and glass workers (male) marked the highest rise of 66.30 percent, while the second highest increase was in the earnings of the construction workers, of 23.46 percent.

Meanwhile, the survey reveals that the earnings of female workers employed in tea stalls rose the most, by 76.27 percent. Besides, the income of female workers of wholesale and retail trade sector and glass and ceramics sector also increased 38.89 percent and 28.08 percent respectively.

But the earnings of females working in postal communication sector declined 29.14 percent, 20.66 percent in cane and wooden furniture sector and 13 percent in banking and insurance sector. Females employed in edible oil, shrimp processing, cotton textiles, pharmaceuticals and construction industries also took home less money comparing with the first quarter of the fiscal.

Meanwhile, the earnings of males working in shrimp processing, jute, textiles, woodworks, pharmaceuticals, electricity, gas and water, and water transport occupations declined from 1.5 percent to 7.64 percent.