May 1 is international labour day, a day which commemorates a time of civil unrest in the late 19th century when workers in industrialised countries demonstrated for improved working conditions, wage raises and the establishment of a maximum working day and week. Many of the demonstrations were suppressed with force. The rights that demonstrators fought for at that time are crystallised in many labour legislations.
Bangladesh Labour Code, 2006 has provided detailed provisions related to working hours, working conditions and leave.
Here is a brief account of the laws relating to employment of labours, workings hours, leave and child labour, etc:
Working hours
Daily working hours
No adult worker shall be required or allowed to work in an establishment for more than eight hours in any day.
Interval for rest or meal
A worker is entitled to:
An interval of at least one hour for rest or meal if he works more than six hours in any day
An interval of at least half an hour for rest or meal if he works more than five hours in any day
An interval of at least one hour or two intervals of at least half an hour if he works for more than eight hours
Weekly hours
No adult worker shall be required or allowed to work in an establishment for more than 48 hours in any week.
Extra-allowance for overtime
Where a worker works in an establishment on any day or week for more than the hours fixed by the law, he shall be entitled to allowance at the rate of twice his ordinary rate of basic wage and dearness allowance and ad-hoc or interim pay.
Limitation of hours of work for women
No women shall, without her consent, be allowed to work in an establishment between the hours of 10pm and 6am.
Leave
Casual leave
Every worker shall be entitled to casual leave the full wages for ten days in a calendar year, and such leave shall not be accumulated and carried forward to the succeeding year
Sick leave
Every worker other than a newspaper worker, shall be entitled to sick leave with full wages for fourteen days in a calendar year. Every newspaper worker shall be entitled to sick leave with half wages for not less than one-eighteenth of the period of services.
Festival holidays
Every worker shall be allowed eleven days of paid festival holiday in a calendar year.
Working conditions
Health and safety of the employees
If the government is satisfied that any operation carried on in an establishment exposes any person employed in it to a serious risk of bodily injury, poisoning, or disease, it may make rules applicable to such establishment or class of establishments in which such operation is carried on: specifying the operation and declaring it to be hazardous prohibiting or restricting the employment of women, adolescents or children in the operation providing for the periodical medical examination of persons employed in the operation and prohibiting the employment of persons not certified as fit for such employment providing for the protection of all persons employed in the operation or in the vicinity of the places where it is carried on and the use of any specified materials or processes in connection with the operation notice specifying use and precautions regarding use of any corrosive chemicals
Child labour
No child shall be employed or permitted to work in any occupation or establishment.
No adolescent shall be employed or permitted to work in any occupation or establishment unless a certificate of fitness in the prescribed form and granted to him by a registered medical practitioner
Labour Court
A labour court consists of a chairman and two members. The chairman of the labour court is appointed by the government from amongst the district judges or additional district judges.
The terms and conditions of appointment of the chairman of the labour court shall be determined by the government. A labour court has exclusive jurisdiction to adjudicate and determine and industrial dispute or any other dispute related to labour or any question which has been brought before it.