© Md Khalid Rahman

LECTURE 01

INTRODUCTION TO
LABOUR LAW AND
INTERNATIONAL
LABOUR
STANDARDS

LABOUR LAW OF
BANGLADESH
 BANGLADESH LABOUR ACT, 2006: AN OVERVIEW

The Bangladesh Labour Act, 2006

Act No. XLII of 2006
Passed in Bangla: Bangladesh Sram Ain, 2006
Gazette Notification dated 11th October 2006
Repealed most of the Labour Laws of Bangladesh
Official English Translation in 2015
Total Sections: 354

MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 2

 BACKGROUND OF BANGLADESH LABOUR ACT, 2006

Before 2006, the old labor laws were made mostly during the British Colonia regime
and Pakistan period and they were as many as 50 in number. In many cases these laws
were outdated, scattered, inconsistent and often overlapping each other.
The Labour Court Bar Association in 1990 placed a demand to the government to
simplify the labour laws and made a comprehensive single labour code. The government
responded to the same and formed a commission namely ‘Labor Law Commission.’
1992 with 38 members from both employer, workers side as well as government
representatives and legal expert.

MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 3

 BACKGROUND OF BANGLADESH LABOUR ACT, 2006

The Commission was headed by a former Justice of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh
and 8 labour leaders representing various unions and organizations. The Commission
thoroughly reviewed total 44 legislations which were in force at the time. All these
legislations were divided into four categories and the members of the commission also
divided themselves into four separate committees to review each category of
legislations.
The Commission also considered the labour laws of different countries. Besides, the
Commission also considered the opinion of stakeholders by way of question answers,
interview, focus group discussions etc.

MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 4

 BACKGROUND OF BANGLADESH LABOUR ACT, 2006

In their recommendations, the Commission argued to repeal 27 laws and it prepared a

draft Labour Act in 1994. This commission submitted its report to the Prime Minister on
31 March 1994.
After about 14 years of establishment of the Commission and 12 years after
recommendations of the commission, the Labour Act 2006 was ultimately passed in the
parliament in 2006. There are still 25 valid laws dealing with labour and industrial
issues have not been repealed or consolidated and as such the Bangladesh Labour Act,
2006.

MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 5

 OBJECTIVES

To consolidate and amend the laws relating to:

 Employment of Labour
 Relations between workers and employers
 Determination of minimum wages
 Payment of wages
 Compensation for injuries to workers

MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 6

 OBJECTIVES

To consolidate and amend the laws relating to:

 Formation of trade unions
 Raising and settlement of industrial disputes
 Health, safety, welfare and working conditions of workers
 Apprenticeship
 Matters ancillary to labour and industry

MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 7

 APPLICATION OF BANGLADESH LABOUR ACT, 2006

 Section 1(3) & 1(4)

 To the whole of Bangladesh except:
 Government offices
 Security printing press
 Ordnance factories
 Not for profit establishments including orphanage, old home etc
 Shops or stalls in any public exhibition or show

MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 8

 APPLICATION OF BANGLADESH LABOUR ACT, 2006

 Shops or stalls in any public fair for religious or charitable purpose.

 Educational, training and research institutions but the workers other

than teachers, employed by any university shall not be subject to the
restrictions except for the purposes of Chapter XII, XIII and XIV.

 Hostels and messes maintained not for profit.

MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 9

 APPLICATION OF BANGLADESH LABOUR ACT, 2006

 Establishments where the workers are governed by Conduct Rules

applicable to Government servants in respect of Chapter II.
 Workers whose services are regulated under Articles 62, 79, 113 or 133
of the Constitution except for the purposes Chapters XII, XIII and XIV of
the workers employed by the Railway Department, Post, Telegraph and
Telephone Departments, Roads and Highways Department, Public Works
Department, Public Health Engineering Department, Bangladesh
Government Press.
 Seamen, except for the purposes of Chapters XII, XIII and XIV

MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 10

 APPLICATION OF BANGLADESH LABOUR ACT, 2006

 Ocean going vessels, except for the purposes of Chapter

XVI.
 Agricultural farms where less than 10 workers normally
employed.
 Domestic servants.
 Establishment run by the owner with the aid of members of
his family and without employing any hired labour.

MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 11

 LEGISLATIONS AND POLICIES ON LABOUR LAWS

 Bangladesh Labour Act 2006

 Bangladesh Labour Rules 2015
 Bangladesh EPZ Labour Act 2019
 Bangladesh Cha Sramik Kallyan Fund Act 2016
 National Labour Policy (2012)
 National Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Policy (2013)
 National Skills Development Policy (2011)

MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 12

 DEFINITIONS

 Section 2(7): “factory” means any precincts or premises where five or more workers
ordinarily work on any day of the year and in any part of which a manufacturing
process is carried on, but does not include a mine;
 Section 2(8): “adolescent” means a person who has completed fourteenth year but
has not completed eighteenth year of age;
 Section 2(17): “discharge” means the termination of service of a worker by the
employer for reasons of physical or mental incapacity or continued ill- health;
 Section 2(22): “strike” means cessation of work or refusal to work jointly by a group
of workers employed in any establishment or refusal to accept work or continue to
work unanimously by a body of workers employed therein;
MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 13
 DEFINITIONS
 Section 2(36): “adult” means a person who has completed eighteenth year of age;
 Section 2(39): “dismissal” means the termination of service of a worker by the employer for
misconduct;
 Section 2(52): “collective bargaining agent [CBA]” means a trade union or federation of
trade unions of an establishment or group of establishments which is an agent of the workers
[CBA] for collective bargaining in such establishment or group of establishments under
Chapter XIII;
 Section 2(56): “award” means the settlement of any industrial dispute or any matter relating
thereto by the Arbitrator, Labour Court or the Tribunal also, and includes an interim award;
 Section 2(58): “lay-off” means the failure, refusal or inability of an employer to give
employment to a worker on account of shortage of coal, power or raw material or the
accumulation of stock or the break-down of machinery;
MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 14
 DEFINITIONS
 Section 2(60): “industry” means any business, trade, manufacture, calling, occupation,
service or employment;
 Section 2(62): “industrial dispute” means any dispute or difference of opinion between
employers and employers, between employers and workers or between workers and workers
in respect of appointment or conditions of service or conditions of work or environment of
work of any person;
 Section 2(63): “child” means a person who has not completed 14th (fourteenth) years of
age;
 Section 2(65): “worker” means any person including an apprentice employed in any
establishment or industry, either directly or through a contractor, [by whatever name he is
called,] to do any skilled, unskilled, manual, technical, trade promotional or clerical work
for hire or reward, whether the terms of employment are expressed or implied, but does not
include a person employed mainly in a managerial, administrative [or supervisory] capacity;
MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 15
 INTERNATIONAL LABOR ORGANIZATION (ILO)
It provides technical assistance primarily in the
The International Labor Organization fields of-
(ILO) is a specialized agency of the United • Vocational training and vocational rehabilitation;
• Employment policy;
Nations that deals with labor issues. Its
• Labor administration;
headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland. • Labor law and industrial relations;
Its secretariat — the people who are • Working conditions;
employed by it throughout the world — is • Management development;
known as the International Labor Office. The • Cooperatives;
• Social security;
organization received the Nobel Peace
Prize in 1969. • Labor statistics and occupational safety and
health.

MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 16

 INTERNATIONAL LABOR ORGANIZATION (ILO)

ILO and Bangladesh

Bangladesh has been an important and active member State of the ILO since 22 June 1972.
To date, Bangladesh has ratified 33 ILO Conventions including seven fundamental
Conventions as enshrined in the ILO Declaration. The ILO Office works in close
collaboration with its tripartite constituents and social partners towards achieving
Bangladesh’s decent work objectives.

MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 17

 LEGISLATION ON LABOUR RIGHTS IN BANGLADESH

Labor rights in the Constitution of Bangladesh

The Fundamental Rights and the Directive Principles of State Policy enshrined in our
Constitution need a special mention in view of their supreme importance in directing and
influencing the Labor Legislation on the country.
 Principles of Ownership: The people shall own or control the instilments and means of
production and distribution, and with this end in view ownership shall assume the
following forms: state ownership, co-operative ownership and private ownership (Article
13).
 Emancipation of Peasants and Workers: It shall be a fundamental responsibility of the
State to emancipate the toiling masses- the peasants and workers- and backward sections
of the people from all forms of expiation (Article 14).
MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 18
 LEGISLATION ON LABOUR RIGHTS IN BANGLADESH

Labor rights in the Constitution of Bangladesh

Article 15: Provision of Basic Necessities

Article 16: Rural Development and Agricultural Revolution
Article 18: Public Health and Morality
Article 19: Equality of Opportunity
Article 20: Work as Right and Duty
MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 19
 LEGISLATION ON LABOUR RIGHTS IN BANGLADESH

Labor rights in the Constitution of Bangladesh

 Prohibition of Forced Labour: Article 34 of the Constitution specifically provides as
one of the fundamental rights that all forms of forced labour are prohibited and any
contravention of this provision shall be an offence punishable in accordance with law
(Article 34).
 Freedom of Association: Every Citizen shall have the right to form associations or
unions, subject to any reasonable restrictions imposed by law in the interest of morality or
public order (Article 38).
 Discrimination on ground of Religion, etc: The State shall not discriminate against any
citizen on grounds only of religion, race, caste sex or place of birth. (Article 28(1)).
MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 20
 PRINCIPLES OF LABOR LEGISLATION

Social Justice: Social justice is the signature tune of the Constitution of Bangladesh and this
note is nowhere more vibrant than in industrial jurisprudence. The Preamble to our
Constitution also lays down the objective of establishing 'economic and social justice', 'a
society free from exploitation.
Social Equity: Another principle on which Labor Legislation is based is social equity.
Broadly speaking, social equity is a part of social justice. Legislation based on social justice
fixes a definite standard for adoption for the future, taking into consideration the events and
circumstances of the past and the present.
National Economy: In enacting labor legislation, the general economic situation of the
country has to be borne in mind lest the very objective of the legislation be defeated. The state
of national economy is an important factor in influencing labour legislation in the country.
MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 21
 PRINCIPLES OF LABOR LEGISLATION

International Uniformity: International uniformity is another principle on which labor

laws are based. The important role played by the International Labor Organization (ILO) in
this connection is praiseworthy. The basic principles of the Labor Policy of ILO are:
(a) Labor is not a commodity;
(b) Freedom of expression and of association are essential to continued progress;
(c) Poverty anywhere constitutes a danger to prosperity every where.
ILO aims at securing minimum standards on a uniform basis in respect of all labor matters.
Most of the Labor Legislation in Bangladesh is based on this principle.

MD KHALID RAHMAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW, AIUB. EMAIL: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu 22

 Prepared by-

THANK YOU!
Md Khalid Rahman
Assistant professor
Department of law
American international university-Bangladesh
Email: khalid.rahman@aiub.edu

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