Covid-19 affected most garment workers: survey

Some 82 per cent of garment workers have reported that the Covid-19 crisis has had at least some impact on their livelihoods, according to findings of the South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (Sanem) and Microfinance Opportunities (MFO).

The garment factory staff cut spending and borrowed money to cover essential expenses, relied on their extended family for assistance and/or moved to cheaper accommodations.

Of the respondents of the survey, one-fourth resorted to cost cutting and one-fifth to borrowing.

Of some 51 per cent who used to send money to family members prior to the emergence of Covid-19, 18 per cent said to have stopped doing so altogether.

 Another 58 per cent informed sending either less money or less frequently while the rest reported making no changes at all.

Sanem in partnership with the MFO has been conducting a series of surveys under a project titled "Garment Worker Diaries" to assess the impact of the ongoing pandemic on the overall working and living conditions of garment workers in Bangladesh.

The project began in 2016 with a view to collecting and disseminating workers' data in five countries engaged in production including Bangladesh, India and Cambodia.

Around 1,269 workers employed in factories in Chattogram, Dhaka city, Gazipur, Narayanganj and Savar participated in the survey. Over three-quarters of the respondents were women.

The findings were made public through a press release sent yesterday.

When it comes to migration, some 89 per cent of garment workers said to have done so at least once from their birthplaces due to limited job opportunities in their hometowns, for poverty, in tow behind spouses or families, to earn more money or for preference of other cities to live in.

Some 64 per cent of the respondents said to have migrated just once for work-related purposes while 36 per cent twice or more.

Regarding having the authority to spend money, 82 per cent were "able to respond".

Of them, 58 per cent said it was decided by some other family members while the rest said to be taking their own decisions.