DHAKA (ILO News) – The Bangladesh Government has expanded the coverage of the pilot employment injury scheme to include compensation for accidents that may occur when workers are commuting to and from work.

The Governance Board of the Employment Injury Scheme (EIS) Pilot during its 8th meeting held on 13 May 2024, unanimously approved the inclusion of ‘commuting accidents’ as industrial accidents, making them eligible for compensation payout starting from 1st July 2024.  

Chairing the meeting, Md. Mahbub Hossain, Secretary of the Ministry of Labour and Employment ruled: “We are very pleased to include commuting accidents in the Employment Injury Scheme Pilot to ensure protection of industries and workers in Bangladesh”.

The decision was unanimously supported by employers' organizations, workers' organizations and Government agencies who are members of the EIS Pilot Governance Board. 

ILO technical experts provided insights into key aspects of the technical and financial aspects of such an expansion, including conditions for considering commuting accidents as workplace accidents but keeping separate records as these accidents take place outside the factory and not identifying them with any factory. Additionally, they presented a strong case for the financial sustainability of the coverage of accidents under the EIS Pilot.  

Employers’ associations responded positively saying; “we support fundamental rights of workers for social protection and would be happy to consider new benefits provided they do not affect the industry’s competitiveness,” agreeing to include commuting accidents under the pilot scheme from 1st July 2024. 

The workers’ representatives also expressed their commitment to support the initiative. “RMG Sector is a relatively safe sector, however, road travel is the most horrible part of this job, therefore commuting accidents are important to be covered”. 

Article 7 of the ILO Employment Injury Benefits Convention No. 121 (C-121) requires countries to define industrial accidents, including the conditions under which a commuting accident is considered to be an industrial accident. Adapting this measure brings the Bangladesh EIS one-step in closer alignment with the requirements outlined in C -121.

In the ambit of the EIS Pilot, commuting accidents are considered accidents sustained while on the direct way between the place of work and the workers’ local residence. With the inclusion of commuting accidents in the EIS Pilot, the Pilot now covers two out of three recommended vulnerabilities, with ‘Occupational Diseases’ as the only outstanding vulnerability.  A process has however started to develop the national capacity and data on occupational diseases. 

"Since 2022, the EIS Pilot has been compensating injured workers and the dependants of deceased workers in the ready-made garments sector for work-related accidents. With the inclusion of commuting accidents, the initiative is expected to provide enhanced protection to workers, and improve industrial relations,” said Tuomo Poutiainen, ILO’s Country Director for Bangladesh. 

ILO and GIZ are jointly providing technical support to the Government of Bangladesh, employers’, and workers’ organizations in implementing the Employment Injury Scheme Pilot. The ILO initiative is funded by the Governments of the Netherlands and Canada, whereas the GIZ initiative is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

The government has expanded the coverage of its pilot employment injury scheme by including compensation for accidents that may occur when workers are commuting to and from work.

The governance board of the Employment Injury Scheme (EIS) Pilot, during its 8th meeting on 13 May, unanimously approved the inclusion of 'commuting accidents' as industrial accidents, making workers eligible for compensation starting from 1 July.

"We are very pleased to include commuting accidents in the Employment Injury Scheme Pilot to ensure protection of industries and workers in Bangladesh," said Md Mahbub Hossain, secretary of the Ministry of Labour and Employment (MoLE), while chairing the meeting.

‘We are very pleased to include commuting accidents in the employment injury scheme pilot to ensure protection of industries and workers in Bangladesh,’ labour secretary Md Mahbub Hossain said.

Under the technical supports from the International Labour Organisation and GIZ, the EIS pilot has been compensating injured workers and the dependents of deceased workers in the Bangladesh RMG sector for work-related accidents since June 21, 2022.

The ILO initiative is funded by the Netherlands government and Canada, whereas the GIZ initiative is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.

The decision for the inclusion of ‘commuting accidents’ was unanimously supported by the Bangladesh Employers Federation, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association, workers’ organisations and government agencies, who are the members of the EIS pilot governance board, said a statement issued by the ILO on Tuesday.

In the meeting, ILO experts provided insights into key aspects of the technical and financial aspects of such an expansion, including conditions for considering commuting accidents as workplace accidents but keeping separate records as these accidents take place outside the factory and not identifying them with any factory.

Additionally, they presented a strong case for the financial sustainability of the coverage of accidents under the EIS pilot.

The ILO statement mentioned that employers’ associations responded positively over the inclusion of commuting accidents, saying that they support fundamental rights of workers for social protection and would be happy to consider new benefits provided they do not affect the industry’s competitiveness.

The workers’ representatives said that RMG sector was a relatively safe sector, however, road travel was the most horrible part of this job, therefore commuting accidents were important to be covered.

‘With this inclusion of commuting accidents, the initiative is expected to provide enhanced protection to workers and improve industrial relations, which are often disrupted by accidents involving workers on their way to or from work,’ said Tuomo Poutiainen, ILO country director for Bangladesh.

More than 30 brands and retailers have pledged a yearly contribution of 0.019% of their respective RMG export volume from Bangladesh to support the Employment Injury Scheme (EIS Pilot) which promises Bangladesh workers financial protection against workplace injuries and fatalities.