We are a multisectoral initiative of the Institute of Disaster Management and Vulnerability Studies of the University of Dhaka to promote, protect and ensure the full and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by workers with disabilities and to promote respect for their inherent dignity in the aftermath of workplace accidents in the RMG Sector of Bangladesh.
Since 2005 we have been involved in managing two of the most dramatic workplace accidents in the RMG sector of Bangladesh: Spectrum (2005) and Rana Plaza (2013).
And since 2016 we have been deeply involved in determining the ratio of non-fatal accidents in the RMG sector through the Simon Project.
The Simon Project summarizes a two-year relational process to estimate The Ratio of non-fatal workplace accidents for Bangladesh's RMG Sector. This "relational" and statistical calculation aims at developing an estimation of The Ratio while using the process as a means to accumulate Trust among all stakeholders involved. The Ratio defines the percentage of workers who lost at least one workday during the previous year due to a workplace injury.
The Study involved performing onsite surveys of 14,075 workers employed in 54 garment factories that supply a major British textile firm. Based on survey data, The Ratio was estimated at 3.04%, which compares favourably with accident rates reported for Spain (3.56% for the textile industry and 1.53% for clothing manufacture) and Portugal (2.07% for clothing manufacturing).
This calculation is well below previously estimated rates for Bangladesh (for 2003 Hämäläinen et al. [2009] estimated a 20.47% ratio for workplace accidents resulting in work absences of at least four days).
The estimated Ratio allows us the implementation of a public or private social protection system.
The Study's secondary goal was for all involved stakeholders to accept The Ratio, based on the Trust accumulated during the survey's execution.
The "license to operate" granted by the stakeholders to both The Ratio and the methodology used for its estimation is a crucial instrument for the future development of public and private insurance solutions.