Sociologist of international relations. The author wrote the book lose the south (Écosociété Editions, 2020).
Last month marked the 10e anniversary of the Rana Plaza disaster in Bangladesh. On April 24, 2013, a textile factory near Dhaka collapsed, killing more than 1,130 people and injuring 2,500 others, mostly women workers. Aurélie Lanctôt has also returned to “the cries, the blood, the tears” created by these chain disasters.
This tragedy represents flaws in an economic system based on profit, a system that is allied to the devaluation of the work of women, especially those working in the Global South. The collapse came after workers noticed cracks in the walls and pillars of the old, poorly constructed concrete building. After the factory has been closed for a day, the owner calls the workers back and forces them to return to their jobs or face dismissal. A few hours later, the building collapses on top of them. On thousands of emaciated women’s bodies from the impact.
According to a report, the building sat on loose soil mixed with even rubbish, and the building was constructed with poor quality materials. Even more alarming, the owner had built eight floors when the building permit authorized five. These imprudences, combined with the vibrations and the weight of the industrial machines, got the better of the Rana Plaza.
After an interrupted legal battle that resumed in 2022, building owner Sohel Rana and 36 others (including her parents) were charged with causing the workers’ deaths. Four other people have been charged with helping Rana hide from justice and flee. All but Rana have been released on bail pending trial. The prosecution plans to present 594 witnesses to the court.
International and sexual division of labor
The concept of the international division of labor explains that some (industrialized) countries produce goods with high added value, some produce manufactured goods (such as Bangladesh) and others low-cost raw materials (often countries with more low income). The sexual division of labor means that women are confined to jobs that are less well paid and less safe than men. In Bangladesh, for example, women are overrepresented in the textile industry, where labor regulations are less stringent and wages are lower. In comparison, the auto parts or machinery equipment industries have stronger unions (and often more accepted by governments), as well as tougher regulations.
Although the investment of foreign capital in their country gives them access to income in the productive market, women in the Global South are often integrated into the formal economy as low-cost workers. They make up more than 75% of the workforce in “free zones” in East and Southeast Asia, for example. According to a study, while wages have stagnated for the past decades, the cost of living for women garment workers in Bangladesh increased by 85% between 2013 and 2018.
While globalization has improved the lot of a privileged segment of women (those who break the famous glass ceiling), others have yet to manufacture the high-heeled shoes used to reach this famous ceiling. Rana’s decision to force female workers back to work is symptomatic of a system where loss of profit is reason enough to risk lives. Rana therefore followed the precepts of an economic system intrinsically linked to the devaluation of women’s work. It’s the same system that pushes employers to have their employees take regular pregnancy tests to ensure their productivity.
This discrediting of women workers in the textile industry also leads to an increase in sexual violence in these predominantly female companies. A 2019 study by the NGO ActionAid showed that 80% of women garment workers in Bangladesh had experienced or witnessed sexual violence or harassment at work. A 2019 report by a workers’ rights consortium revealed that female employees at five factories in Lesotho owned by a Taiwanese company only had access to promotions if they accepted advances from their male superiors.
This culture of sexual discrimination stems from the fact that women are considered second-class workers and the unions active in these companies are often weak or non-existent. The ActionAid organization also points to the weakness of international legislation for the protection of women workers, particularly within the International Labor Organization.
Deconstruct, understand and critique the system
The Rana Plaza disaster was the subject of commemorative events on April 24, organized by various Quebec organizations. The next step is to think of alternatives so that such events do not happen again with impunity. While 46 companies have signed an agreement to protect workers in these industries in Pakistan, some still refuse to do so, such as Levi’s, Gap, Walmart and Amazon.
An event I’m attending next week will focus on these themes and discuss different models to the current system: The big shift. Fighting in times of global crisis. The event open to the public will take place from May 18 to 21, 2023 at Concordia University.