This week’s Garment Worker Diaries blog post sees us taking a step back from the data to frame the discussion we’ll be having over the next few weeks about COVID-19 lockdowns in Bangladesh and their effect on garment workers.
Bangladesh has recently been one of the harder-hit countries in terms of the spread of COVID-19, and it also has one of the lowest rates of vaccination among countries globally. Garment workers themselves are being vaccinated at very low rates.
Amidst full lockdowns, partial lockdowns, factory production restrictions and the ever-evolving public health directives, it can be easy to lose sight of the people most affected by uncertainty. Even though some times are more uncertain than others, the Garment Worker Diaries methodology demands that we listen to low-income and marginalized communities in uncertain times and “normal” times. That’s what we’ve been doing in Bangladesh for the past four years. This way, we get the full story, directly from workers.
While we wait for that story to unfold in the coming weeks, take a moment to think about the workers returning to work in factories. They will be busy making our clothes while the pandemic is in full flight throughout Bangladesh.
Please remember that you can always submit questions for the workers by writing to [email protected]
