12 years since Rana Plaza collapse: Workers' living standards haven't improved

The collapse of Rana Plaza in Savar killed over a thousand garment workers on April 24, 2013, leading to both domestic and international pressure that began to change the overall environment of the sector. A decade after one of the deadliest tragedies in history, labor leaders say that significant improvements have been made in factory safety and that minimum wages have increased, although not enough. However, there has been little real change in the quality of life for the workers.

In the horrific accident, 1,138 workers were killed and at least another 1,769 were injured—most of them women and young people. Among the more than 4,000 workers employed in the five garment factories, 2,438 were rescued alive and unhurt. However, 182 people are still missing. Of them, the graves or DNA matches of 146 individuals have not been found. Although the DNA of the remaining 36 has been identified, their identities could not be confirmed due to mismatches in the contact addresses and phone numbers.

Following the collapse of Rana Plaza, European buyers formed the Accord and American companies formed the Alliance, setting conditions for garment factories to ensure a safe working environment and improve workers' quality of life. As of last year, 232 factories have met these conditions and have been recognized as environmentally friendly. The United States Green Building Council (USGBC) has certified them.

However, labor leaders say that the tragic memories and cries from the Rana Plaza collapse exposed weaknesses in the overall labor environment, which apply to almost all sectors. But this experience has not been transferred to other sectors. In particular, workers in the informal sector still remain outside formal recognition. Labor leaders are calling for urgent labor law reforms to ensure a safe working environment for all workers.

In 2014, following a directive from the High Court, the government formed a high-level committee to ensure compensation for the victims. The committee recommended compensation of Tk1,451,300 for workers who were permanently disabled, Tk750,000 for those who lost a limb, Tk450,000 for workers needing long-term medical treatment, and Tk150,000 for those suffering from psychological trauma. However, these recommendations were not implemented.

According to national law, the labor code mandates compensation of Tk 200,000 for the families of deceased workers and an additional Tk 250,000 for the injured. However, there is debate over whether all injured workers actually received this compensation. Calling this provision insufficient and unreasonable in today’s context, the non-governmental legal aid organization Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST) has demanded a revision of the compensation rate. They suggest that future income loss, medical expenses, psychological stress, and family dependents be taken into account, in line with international standards. They also called for the resolution of all related cases and the installation of a memorial in honor of the victims.

The organization stated that 11 labor-related (criminal) cases filed in connection with the Rana Plaza incident are still under trial at the Second Labor Court in Dhaka. Of these, arrest warrants have been issued in four cases, four are awaiting public notice publication in newspapers, and the remaining three have not had their hearing dates or case numbers updated in the court calendar.

In addition, three cases are under trial in the Sessions Court. Among them, the case related to the Building Construction Act of 1952 has been suspended by a High Court order. The remaining two cases, related to murder under the Penal Code and corruption in building construction, are being heard together at the District and Sessions Judge Court in Dhaka, where testimony from 93 witnesses has been completed. The next hearing date is set for May 19.

Syed Sultan Uddin Ahmed, Executive Director of the Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS), said, "The lessons from the Rana Plaza disaster have not been applied to other industries. This is why accidents such as the container depot fire in Chittagong, the Hashem Foods factory disaster in Narayanganj, and the fires in Nimtoli and Churihatta have occurred. In these incidents as well, the workers did not receive adequate compensation."

Ruhul Amin, President of the Bangladesh Federation of Workers' Solidarity (BFWS), said, "No updates have been provided regarding the fund, which amounts to several hundred crores of taka, deposited in the Rana Plaza fund. Yet, trade unions had collected this money by pressuring the buyers for the workers' compensation. However, now we are hearing about the bail of Rana Plaza owner Sohel Rana directly from the court."

Sekender Ali Mina, Acting General Secretary of the Workers' Safety Forum, said, "Even after 12 years, the trial has not been completed, and the cases are progressing very slowly. We were recently shocked by Rana's bail, which was later suspended by the Supreme Court. We urge the government to ensure that such incidents do not occur again and to follow the directive of the Appellate Division to resolve the cases within six months."

Chondan Kumar Dey, President of the Bangladesh Independent Garment Workers Union Federation (BIGUF), claimed that the proposal to set up safety committees in factories to increase workers' representation has not been implemented. The process of labor law reform is ongoing. "In the context of our country, nothing can be implemented without strong laws," he said.

The head of the Labor Reform Commission formed by the interim government and Executive Director of the Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS), Sultan Uddin, informed Views Bangladesh, "The commission's report was submitted to the Chief Adviser on Monday (April 21), which recommended adequate compensation for the victims of the Rana Plaza collapse and called for exemplary punishment for those responsible."

Considering the overall situation, particularly based on the experience of the Rana Plaza tragedy and subsequent events, the commission has emphasized 25 key recommendations to ensure that workers can easily access legal benefits related to appointment letters and rights violations. These include the declaration of a national minimum wage and commission to ensure dignified national and sector-specific wages, relaxing conditions for forming trade unions, ensuring occupational health, creating a government labor database, maternity protection, modernization of workers' skills and creating new employment opportunities, establishing an emergency fund, protecting labor history and historical sites, building memorials, increasing the number of labor courts to expedite case resolutions, and banning child, adolescent, and forced labor along with ensuring safety.

With the goal of presenting a report at the 2026 ILO, the commission has proposed necessary amendments to the Bangladesh Labor Law, 2006, and recommended the establishment of a permanent labor commission, considering the importance of the labor sector.

The commission also calls for the establishment of four departments within the Ministry of Labor, covering constitutional and labor rights, legal protection and recognition for workers, ensuring national and sector-specific wages, safe working environments, social security, the right to organize, the right to participate and bargain, the creation of a national labor database, the right of migrant workers to form trade unions, and the employment and skill development of workers.

Taslima Akhter, a member of the commission and president of the Bangladesh Garment Worker Solidarity, said, "There have certainly been some structural changes. Previously, there was little concern about building safety, but now awareness has increased. However, there hasn't been much change in the workers' quality of life."

She said, "The commission believes that the recommendations will not remain confined to paper but will be implemented with specific priorities to improve the lives of workers and farmers. As a result, there will be a visible improvement in their quality of life."