Women’s employment in garment factories is one of these changes. The garment sector is rapidly rising in the country since the 1980’s. The paper is based survey findings conducted among the woman’s workers of RMG industries located at Dhaka and Narayangong – the second largest hub of RMG factories in Bangladesh. The study was conducted on 200 female garment workers of 20 garment industries. This paper investigates the existing labor market and status of women workers in the context of wage discrimination based on gender, obstacles of work place environment in and outside of the industries. The study also analyzes the socio economic status of the women workers in the export-oriented industries like Ready Made Garments. In terms of social and economic context, that women’s working condition is not favorable for the work place. The study shows that distribution of labor force by two main sector agriculture and nonagriculture shows that during the period of 1990-91 to 1999-2000 there has been a small decline in the share of agriculture in total employment. It should be pointed out that the decline in the share of agriculture is more or less continuous for male labor force. Women contributed to 37.9 percent and 39.3 percent of employment in the manufacturing sector in 2000 and 2003 respectively. The garment sector is dependent on female labor largely because underemployment is high among women. In the urban area, the shares of women and man skilled are 12 percent and 35 percent respectively. Empirical result also shows that both the male and female labor force participation is higher in Bangladesh compare to the South Asian Countries. 9.2. Recommendation: The garment industry of Naryanganj has been the key export division and a main source of foreign exchange for the last 25 years. At present, the city generates about $7 billion worth of products each year by exporting garment. The industry provides employment to about 3 million workers of whom 80-90% are women. It has been a major source of employment for rural migrant women in a country that has increasingly limited rural livelihood options, and where women migrants have been largely excluded from formal work in the cities. Though 80-90% of the workers are women in RMG sector, so they should be given much opportunities for the betterment of the garments sector. As they are deprived in this sector our study recommends that they must acquire some qualifications like technical knowledge, Knowledge of labor codes, grow awareness, to make trade union etc. If the workers of the garment sector of Narayanganj can acquire these important qualifications, we believe such kinds of gender discrimination will be removed from the garments sector and this sector will be able to remove all kinds of obstacles which they are now facing, On the other hand if these obstacles are removed from this sector this sector will be able to earn more and more foreign currency, which can remove the social problems from Bangladesh and can help this country to reach as a developed nation all over the world. References: •
Ahmed, N. M. and S.M. Hossain (2006). Future Prospects of Bangladesh’s Readymade Garments Industry and the Supportive Policy Regime, Policy Note Series: PN 0702, Policy Analysis Unit, Research Department, Bangladesh Bank Head Office, Dhaka, Bangladesh.