The Impact of Technological Change on Job Satisfaction of Women Garment Workers in Developing Country

One of the challenges of globalization for the least developed countries is that technology change erodes the advantages of labor intensive technology. This paper examines key impacts of this technological change on job security, job satisfaction, and work relations of textile and garment workers in Bangladesh. It shows that the overall positive impact of technological change is associated with the suitable levels of job security, job satisfaction and work relations. Factors including uncertainty, frustration in terms of the job security; fairness, good supervision minimal conflicts, recognition, promotion and benefits concerned with job satisfaction. The change process, downsizing and strikes are related to the work relations. Both job satisfaction and work relations are significantly related to the overall impact on workers. Job security is related to the overall impact of technological change particularly because of the uncertainty and frustration among workers concerning their status.

Global Technological Change in a Labor Intensive Industry: Its Impact on Textile and Garment Workers

ObjectivesThis study aimed to assess the prevalence of self-medication practices and explore knowledge and practices related to antibiotic use among readymade garment (RMG) workers in Bangladesh.Study designThis large-scale cross-sectional survey was conducted among garment workers in three different garment factories in Chattogram, Bangladesh.MethodsData were collected from 1743 participants, using a pretested semi-structured questionnaire. Descriptive and regression analyses were performed to examine sociodemographic factors, medication patterns, and antibiotic knowledge and practices among the workers.ResultsA significant proportion of the participants (42.4%) only had a primary level of education and majority (80.3%) were not engaged in lifestyle habits such as smoking, drinking alcohol, or chewing betel leaves (80.3%). Cough, cold, and fever were the most reported health complications (66.0%). Most of the participants obtained their medications from pharmacies (66.4%). Self-medication was reported by 93.4% of them, with 55.9% practiced it thinking the disease was not severe. Poor knowledge and practice levels about antibiotics were observed. Gender and educational background influenced the participants' knowledge, while the presence of common diseases affected the practice score.ConclusionThe study demonstrated a high prevalence of self-medication practices among garment workers in Bangladesh, particularly with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). The findings suggest developing interventions to improve knowledge and practices related to antibiotic use and promote responsible self-medication practices among garment workers to mitigate potential risks and adverse effects.

<p>There is a paramount importance of Job Satisfaction of the employees of an organization for the smooth functioning of its work. It has substantial impact on workers’ performance. RMG workers of Bangladesh are enormous in number and instrumental to the economic growth of Bangladesh. But the salary and other benefits of these workers are very low compared to that of other industrial sectors. Sometimes, the salary and benefits are not even paid on time to the workers. As a result, a serious concern has been raised by the national and international stakeholders about the job satisfaction of RMG workers. Therefore, this study aims at identifying the job satisfaction factors of the RMG workers and providing suggestions for the improvement of present situation. For analyzing data multivariate analysis techniques are used by using Smart PLS, and SPSS. Salary and benefits, supervisor’s behavior, work and family life, working condition and the working environment are identified as factors having influence on job satisfaction of RMG workers in Bangladesh. Results show that the salary and benefits, supervisor’s behavior, work and family life are significantly related to the job satisfaction of the workers. This study suggests that for ensuring job satisfaction of the RMG workers in Bangladesh the policy makers should focus more on salary and benefits, supervisors’ behavior, and work and family life of the workers.</p>

Confirming the gratification of the ready-made garment (RMG) workers is still an elusive task, given the fact that unsatisfied workers frequently protest against insufficient amenities provided by the garment owners. The study explored welfare amenities and the principles of human resource management (HRM) regarding the job contentment of workers after the pandemic era. Statistically significant and positive effects of welfare amenities and HRM on job satisfaction were represented by accepting all the hypotheses with a focus on confirmatory factor analysis, which witnessed the model’s accuracy. In addition, the study adopted to structural model for proceeding with the next analysis. Moreover, the study contributed meaningful theoretical and managerial explanations for RMG managers, owners, policymakers and stakeholders to improve the satisfaction of workers by providing efficient HRM and ample welfare amenities. Directions for further research were also obtained in the study.

Background: The garment industry is Bangladesh's largest source of employment and its top export earner. The research aims to identifying workplace and other factors influencing job satisfaction of female garments workers in Bangladesh. Methods: The study used a cross-sectional design conducted over a twelve-month period, from January 1, 2019 to December 31, 2019 focusing on female garment workers in a garment factory located in Gazipur. Participants were selected conveniently, based on their involvement in the different sections of garment and their willingness to participate. The sample size consisted of 307 respondents. Data were collected using a semi-structured questionnaire that gathered information on socio-demographic characteristics and identified workplace and other factors influencing job satisfaction. Results: All of the respondents were female, their mean age was 29.73±7.19 years, mostly were married (84%), and less than half (45.3%) had primary education. The mean of monthly family and personal incomes of the respondents were Tk.17,639.41±4,292.70 and Tk. 9,047.66±768.71 respectively. Among the respondents, 39.1% belonged to packing section, and had been in the employment for 4.83±2.51 years. All the respondents worked 8 hours/day for 6 days and their average over time per day was about 2 hours. Among the different sociodemographic and work-related variables the satisfaction scores were found to be influenced by age, monthly personal income, duration of employment, and working section. Binary logistic regression indicated that for every additional unit of duration of employment respondents were 1.15 times more likely to develop higher satisfaction and workers of cutting section were 2.53 times more likely to have high job satisfaction. Conclusion: Measures need to be taken to alleviate those factors prohibiting high job satisfaction in the garment sectors to promote the female workers in greater contribution in their profession. JOPSOM 2024; 43(1): 50-58

The study analyzed the different factors that are responsible for the harassment of women garment workers in Bangladesh. Three garment factories from Mirpur area under Dhaka district were selected purposively where garment factories are available. The sample consisted of 90 women workers taking 30 randomly from each of the three garment factories. Female workers are mostly employed at the lower category of jobs like operator, finishing helper, polyer etc. These jobs are very monotonous in nature. Because of the nature of their jobs, female workers sometimes lose interest in work and become depressed. A large number of female workers received low and irregular wages which create their job dissatisfaction. Only 22 female workers earned salary between Tk. 2700 to Tk. 3000 per month. Female workers are sexually harassed by their co-workers in the factory or by police or by mastans in the street. Communication problem is a major problem faced by most of the female garment workers. A long distance travel is not only physical strenuous but also mentally stressful. Their overtime rate is very low. Long working hours result in a number of illnesses and diseases like headache, eye trouble, ear ache, musculoskeletal pain etc. Women are exploited easily due to lack of technical knowledge and training. The employers do not pay any heed to this exploitation. Keywords: Garment industry; Women workers; Harassment DOI: 10.3329/jbau.v8i2.7940 J. Bangladesh Agril. Univ. 8(2): 291-296, 2010

The participation of older workers in the German labour force has increased in the recent decade mainly due to institutional and policy developments. This raises the importance of maintaining the skill level of older workers through further training as a mean to strengthen their contribution to economic growth. Furthermore, the requirement of longer employment may also raise the rate of under-represented groups of older workers with low job-satisfaction since unsatisfied workers often tend to exploit early retirement schemes. Building upon studies pointing to a strong association between job satisfaction and labour market behavior, it is therefore essential to examine also the means by which the job satisfaction of these workers can be improved. One such way is by associating between the rates of training to the level of job satisfaction. Accordingly, this research deals with two major questions: The first is whether we recognize an increase in the training participation of older workers over the years, whereas the second, is whether the overall job satisfaction of older workers is affected by participation in training, and in particular, by an occupational-based manner. Using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) for the years 2000, 2004 and 2008, a trend analysis is performed in order to identify developments in the training participation of workers aged 55-64 over the years, followed by a pooled cross-sectional and longitudinal analysis in order to explore the relationship between training and job satisfaction of older workers. Accordingly, the main findings of this research indicate, first, an increase of training participation of workers aged 55-59 over the years, and second, a positive relation between job satisfaction and training of older workers, particularly of blue-collar workers. The positive trend found in the training participation of older workers is a novel development which reflects a change in the training participation pattern. As older workers become a meaningful segment of the labour force, raising investments in their human capital is therefore inevitable. Furthermore, having high job-satisfied older (blue-collar) workers achieved through additional training may have considerable economic implications.

The main objective of the present study is to assess the role of professional and personal aspects in determining job satisfaction of garment industry workers in Bangladesh as a developing country. The present study is conducted on 350 workers from 25 garment factories in Dhaka, Narayanganj, and Gazipur, three districts of Bangladesh where the garment industry dominates. The study location and sample size were determined based on the random sampling method. All the participating workers were interviewed in the light of a predetermined questionnaire. Statistical Package for Social Science-SPSS software, version 24.0 was used for data analysis. Brayfield-Rothe Job Satisfaction Measurement Scale (JSMS) and Questionnaire for Measuring Satisfaction with professional aspects (QMSPA) has been used in this study. The results of the current study showed that, among personal aspects, only age significantly impacted the respondents' overall job satisfaction. The respondents' overall job satisfaction was also significantly influenced by all professional factors. Between the personal and professional facets, the importance of professional factors as determinants of job satisfaction is greater than that of personal factors. The results of the present study suggest that since professional aspects are the main components of job satisfaction, it is necessary to ensure the proper presence of these components. Factors such as pay, job security, and adequate and appropriate amount are indicators of job satisfaction. All parties involved in the garments industry such as employer-worker, regulatory body BGMEA, BKMEA, policy-making body, government, and factory authorities can take into account the results of this study and determine future course of action to increase workers' job satisfaction.

Health Hazards and Labour Laws in Bangladesh: A Narrative-based Study on Women Garment Workers

ObjectivesThis study aims to quantify the degree of work–family conflict (WFC) and financial issues among ready-made garment (RMG) workers in Bangladesh and to investigate their potential associations with self-reported health outcomes.MethodsWe conducted a cross-sectional survey among 1118 RMG workers in labor colonies in Dhaka, Bangladesh, in February and March 2021. Descriptive analyses were performed to characterize WFC (i.e., family life disturbing the job or facing problems in family due to the job) and financial issues (i.e., savings, debt, financial obligations, financial support). We ran multivariable Poisson regression models to examine possible associations between WFC and financial issues and workers’ health (self-reported general health and 10 specific health complaints).ResultsWe found low levels of WFC, low levels of savings, moderate levels of debt, and high levels of financial obligations: virtually all workers agreed they had to keep their job to financially support their spouse, children or other relatives. Only about a third of workers expected they would be able to receive financial support in case of a job loss. Work–family conflict was positively associated with poor health but not consistently with specific symptoms. Financial support was negatively associated, whereas being indebted was weakly positively associated with poor health.ConclusionsOur findings suggest low levels of WFC among RMG workers but high levels of financial obligations. Work–family conflict was positively associated with poor health, but not consistently with specific symptoms. Being indebted was weakly positively associated with poor health. Future prospective studies are needed to confirm these findings.

Eight in ten female readymade garment (RMG) workers in Bangladesh suffer from anemia, a condition which damages both health and productivity. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a workplace nutrition program on anemia reduction in female RMG workers of Bangladesh. A quasi-experimental mixed method study was conducted on 1310 non-pregnant female RMG workers from four factories. Two types of intervention packages (A and C) were tested against their respective controls (B and D) over a 10-month period. Among factories that already provided lunch to workers with regular behavior change counseling (BCC), one intervention (A) and one control (B) factory were selected, and among factories that did not provide lunches to their workers but provided regular BCC, one intervention (C) and one control (D) factory were selected: (A) Lunch meal intervention package: daily nutritionally-enhanced (with fortified rice) hot lunch, once weekly iron-folic acid (IFA) supplement and monthly enhanced (with nutrition module) behavior change counseling (BCC) versus (B) Lunch meal control package: regular lunch and BCC; and (C) Non-meal intervention package: twice-weekly IFA and enhanced BCC versus (D) Non-meal control package: BCC alone. Body weight and capillary hemoglobin were measured. Changes in anemia prevalence were estimated by difference-in-difference (DID) method. Thematic analysis of qualitative in-depth interviews with RMG workers was performed and findings were triangulated. Anemia was reduced significantly in both lunch meal and non-meal intervention (A and C) group (DID: 32 and 12 percentage points, p: <0.001 and <0.05 respectively). The mean hemoglobin concentration also significantly increased by 1 gm/dL and 0.4 gm/dL in both A and C group (p: <0.001 respectively). Weight did not change in the intervention groups (A and C) but significantly increased by more than 1.5 kg in the comparison groups (B and D). The knowledge of different vitamin and mineral containing foods and their benefits was increased significantly among all participants. Workplace nutrition programs can reduce anemia in female RMG workers, with the greatest benefits observed when both nutritionally enhanced lunches and IFA supplements are provided.

Researchers have already shown that job satisfaction of workers is highly associated with motivation, performance and satisfaction of workers/professionals. Conventionally workers in software industry are employed in software companies or organizations and get regular salary for their services to organization in regular office hours; however the growing use of communication technology has generated a new type of online workers, which work on project basis without affiliation with any specific software organization are known as freelancers and are continuously growing in most of the developing countries like Pakistan. This work has quantitatively analyzed the freelancers and traditional workers based on the factors already associated with job satisfaction and growth opportunities present in the field of freelancing and traditional employment in organizational setting such as company office in Pakistani context. We used online survey to collect evidences from both fields. The descriptive analysis of the evidences has shown significant differences between the two groups of workers regarding the factors such as work environment, work hours management, and job security that contribute to the job satisfaction and dissatisfaction of workers, however no significant difference has seen regarding a number of factors such as average work hour and earning amount. The resultant information of this study may help new computer graduates of Pakistan to find their way in selecting their career type and work life in the software industry of Pakistan.

Bangladeshi female readymade garment (RMG) workers' experience of sexual harassment in the workplace raises concerns about the overall working conditions of the garment sector. Female workers' feelings of being unsafe and threatened in the workplace have been considered an alarming issue for international buyers/brands who aim to ensure sexual harassment-free workplaces as a condition of sourcing clothing items. We hypothesise that the frequent experience of sexual harassment among Bangladeshi female RMG workers tends to be associated with (i) age, (ii) marital status, (iii) night shift (working during night time), (iv) non-existence of anti-sexual harassment cells (a formal body/committee works against sexual harassment incidence in the workplace), (v) trade union activity, and (vi) factory location and types. To our knowledge, there has been no previous research on the experience of sexual harassment by female garment workers and its connections to such a variety of occupational and geographical factors. By addressing this gap, the present study aimed to investigate the prevalence and risk factors associated with female garment workers' experience of sexual harassment. Cross-sectional data were collected from 332 (mean age = 26.10 years; SD = 6.54 years) currently employed female garment workers in Bangladesh, between February and July 2018. Data were analysed using bivariate and multivariate logistic regression modelling. In the past 6 months, nearly one-quarter (22.0%) of workers reported experiencing frequent sexual harassment inside the factory, mainly by male co-workers (37.0%), supervisors (32.9%), security guards (27.4%), and factory owners (2.7%). Workers from the factories located in Chattogram (a peripheral region compared to Dhaka) reported a higher frequency of sexual harassment than those working in factories located in Dhaka (the capital city of Bangladesh). Overall, the percentages of unmarried and young female workers who experienced sexual harassment were almost double compared to married and aged female workers. Workers' frequent experience of sexual harassment at the workplace was associated with factory location (β 0.67, 95%CI 1.02, 3.76), night shift (β 2.58, 95%CI 6.92, 25.18), and non-existence of an anti-sexual harassment cell inside the factory (β 0.62, 95%CI 0.97, 3.55). Urgent improvements in overall workplace conditions and anti-sexual harassment programmes are needed to safeguard female workers in the Bangladeshi RMG sector.

Against the backdrop of aging populations and policies to extend working lives, this study advances prior research by examining how job satisfaction of older workers is associated with not only own, but also coworkers’ usage of 3 human resource (HR) policies: phasing out (i.e., lighter workload, additional leave, and semi-retirement), demotion, and training. Exploiting unique, linked organization-department-employee data from the European Sustainable Workforce Survey (ESWS), hypotheses derived from the job demands-resources (JD-R) model and relative deprivation theory are tested with 3-level regression analysis. The findings show that demotees are less satisfied with their job compared to older employees who were not demoted, whereas participation in phasing out arrangements is not related to older workers’ job satisfaction. Older employees who received training are more satisfied with their job than those who did not. Moreover, in departments where coworkers participated in training, older employees who did not receive training are more satisfied than those in departments where training is unavailable or in which training is offered, but not used. Phasing out and demotion of colleagues are not associated with job satisfaction of older workers. These results are largely in line with the JD-R model, as demotion would decrease motivation and, in turn, job satisfaction, whereas training would increase job resources and motivation and, in turn, job satisfaction. This study concludes that providing training to older workers is a fruitful HR strategy for employers to stimulate job satisfaction among their older employees and facilitate longer working lives.