Garment workers suffered extensively on the second day of the "strict lockdown" as there were hardly any vehicles plying the streets due to the restrictions imposed by the government to control the spread of coronavirus.
Most of the workers had to fend for themselves as the garment factory owners could not provide them with adequate transportation facilities.
Thousands of garment workers in different areas of the capital and Savar upazila were seen going to their workplaces using various means of transportation. Most of them had to ride in overcrowded buses due to the insufficient number of vehicles.
Many workers claimed that they had to spend extra money on fares up to three times as there were not many buses available.
Seeking to be unnamed, a worker from Savar said that “the owners have kept the factories open but no transportation facilities are being provided by them. How are we supposed to go to our workplaces? I’ll lose my job if I don’t show up on time. Therefore, I have to reach the factory anyhow taking any transport that is accessible to me.”
Syed Nazrul Islam, First Vice President of BGMEA told Bangladesh Post that most of the garments workers live in the vicinity of their factories. When asked about the rest of the workers who require transportation services to reach their workplaces, he said that he does not have much information about the other factories, but transport services are being provided to the workers of his factory according to the directives of the government.
The government's lockdown directive states that all factories and industries will remain open during the lockdown, but the garment factory authorities will have to provide transportation to pick up and drop off workers.
Despite the instruction, only a few transports provided by authorities could be noticed on the streets. Garment workers had to face great difficulty in the morning to reach their destinations as most garment factories have not arranged a proper transportation system for workers.