A “Multi-Stakeholder Roundtable on Living Wage in RMG Industry in Bangladesh” was jointly organized by Fair Labor Association (FLA) and Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) Bangladesh. The event took place at a Dhaka hotel on 20 March 2025.
FLA and ETI are running separate projects on this issue with support from Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH under its Partnership for Sustainable Textiles (PST) initiative.
A total of 37 participants, 16 females and 21 males, comprising of representatives from supplier RMG factories, buyer brands, Trade Union Federations, Labour Rights Organizations, Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives, international and bi-lateral development organizations participated in the event.
After the welcome address by ETI Bangladesh Country Manager Abil Bin Amin, findings from two researches were presented in the event - i) Wage Dynamics in Bangladesh (conducted under FLA project); and ii) Exploring the Socio-Economic Impact of Living Wage Gaps: A Case Study of 2 RMG Factories of Bangladesh (conducted under ETI project).
The FLA project brief and research findings was presented by Gita Nauli, Senior Regional Manager for Southeast Asia, Fair Labor Association; and Farah Marzan, Associate Director, Research and Policy Integration for Development (RAPID).
The ETI project brief and research findings was presented by Ahmed Abu Sufian, Senior Programme Officer – Workplace Programme, ETI Bangladesh; Munir Uddin Shamim, Sr. Manager, Programme, Evidence & Learning, Ethical Trading Initiative Bangladesh; and Rashna Mahzabin, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Specialist, Ethical Trading Initiative Bangladesh.
After the presentations, the session was made open for the participants to contribute to the discussion on living wage. Participants engaged in knowledge-sharing and exchanged insights on enabling factors, challenges, best practices, and future actions. they came up with experiential recommendations to realize living wage; or, at least, minimize the gap between living wage and current wage as a first step.
Earlier this year, the first roundtable was jointly organized by these organizations on 20 March 2025. That roundtable created a space for open dialogue among stakeholders, allowing them to better understand each other's realities, collaboratively develop solutions, and align on responsible purchasing practices and social dialogue mechanisms.
This collaboration aims at driving meaningful and sustainable improvements regarding living wage in the sector.
