Women once made up 80% of the garment workforce, that share has fallen below 55%

The share of women working in Bangladesh’s garment industry decreased over the past decade, with female participation falling to 53 percent in 2023 from 56 percent in 2014, according to a recent study.

Reports of GBV, harassment in factories can no longer be ignored

The finding of a survey that 83 percent female garment workers have faced some form of sexual harassment in their workplace is shocking. The survey also found that many of the garment factories do not have any committee for lodging complaints of sexual harassment which is mandatory as per the direction of the High Court.

FOR four decades, the garment industry has powered Bangladesh's economy and put more people to work than any other sector. Women in particular have benefited from this hiring boom, and today, a majority of the industry's four million employees are female.