22 October, 2024The employment injury scheme (EIS) is a social protection programme in Bangladesh which includes compensation for medical treatment and rehabilitation services, as well as income loss caused by occupational injuries and disease. Together with the International Labour Organisation and GIZ, IndustriALL Global Union held a series of awareness raising workshops on EIS for affiliates in Bangladesh.
The pilot project was launched in 2022, with the support of ILO and covers all RMG factories in Bangladesh and 4 millions workers.
The EIS-pilot project aims to top up the lump sums already paid in Bangladesh for death and permanent disability due to work injury, and to ensure that work-related compensations are line with international labour standards. More than 60 brands have become signatories; they make voluntary payments to top off the fund and bring it up to international standards.
"The EIS Pilot is a bridging solution that aims at bringing Bangladesh to a situation where workers will be fully protected against work-related injury through a strong institution and legal framework. The pilot is a social protection pioneer scheme based on a robust tripartite governance and data management,"
said senior adviser and EIS pilot coordinator Anne Marie Larosa.
Awareness raising workshops for IndustriALL’s affiliates were conducted in both Dhaka and Chattogram. A total of 90 trade union federation leaders, organizers and plant-level union leaders participated. The aim was to provide a detailed understanding of the EIS-pilot programme, with a focus on how deceased workers’ family members and permanently disabled workers can receive compensation in addition to the lump-sum amount that was paid earlier.
The workshops sought to introduce a deeper understanding of the application process for availing benefits under the scheme, including the ways in which unions can assist injured or deceased workers and their family members in filing for compensation under the scheme. Participants discussed the limitation of the scheme that it is only applicable to workers who were injured or killed on or after the initiation of the pilot project on 21 June 2022.
Christina Hajagos-Clausen, IndustriALL textile director, says:
“The employment injury scheme is crucial to ensuring a strong safety net for RMG workers in Bangladesh. We need more global brands to support the pilot project and make it sustainable.”