TRADE unions and civil society groups delivered a joint letter to the Bangladeshi High Commission in London on Thursday to mark anniversary of the Rana Plaza factory collapse, calling on its government to address sweatshop workers’ wages and assure their trade union freedoms.

The event also included a moment’s silence to honour the lives of the 1,138 Bangladeshi garment workers who were killed when an eight-storey building collapsed due to a structural failure in 2013.

Unison, GMB, CWU and IWGB, Labour Behind the Label and War on Want, Amnesty International UK and No Sweat were among the unions and groups that took part in a rally outside the commission.

Speakers called for the interim government to urgently ensure wage reform, grow social security for Ready-Made Garment (RMG) workers, and build support for trade union freedoms.

Labour Behind the Label policy lead Anna Bryher said: “Dickensian conditions faced by workers under colonial trade policies are something many think of as a thing of the past, but Bangladesh unions are fighting every day in a system rigged to build money for fashion brands and keep workers in economic enslavement. 

“[US President Donald] Trump is only the latest white man to have a go at taking money from the women of Bangladesh. The interim government has a chance to set laws and social security that protects their workers from global bullying.
“After decades of suppression of wages and trade union freedoms, the current administration has an opportunity. They must take it and urgently act to advance conditions for the workers making our clothes.”