8/2: Khala's Former Garment Factory

A couple days ago, Khala took us to the garment factory where she worked for 18 years. This factory was where she met all of the women who are participating in the cooperative. The clothes we saw being made had tags for J.C. Penney. The factory owner told us that they also make a lot of clothes for Walmart.

Having half-expected to walk into the factory and find young emaciated children chained to their work stations, we were actually surprised by what seemed to be high standards for working conditions. The factory was reasonably well ventilated, there were lists of labor rights posted on the wall, and some of the employees were even using safety equipment. The real problem is with the workers’ wages, which are well below a living wage, even for Bangladeshi standards.

In 1987, when Khala started working at this garment factory, the salary of the women working there (6 days a week, 8:00am to 8:00pm with a 1-hour lunch break) was roughly $3 per month. If she worked overtime (meaning 8:00am to 10:00pm), she made $6 per month. Today the salary of the workers is much higher: the minimum wage is about $15 and with overtime they can make up to $30. Even in Bangladesh, this is not enough money to raise a family.

See some pictures of the garment factory: here, here, and here.