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Sexual Harassment at Workplace

More awareness needed in informal sector: speakers

Staff Correspondent
Sexual harassment at workplace should be addressed strictly, and along with formal sectors,-working women from informal sectors and periurban areas must get proper attention regarding incidents of sexual violence, speakers said at a roundtable yesterday.
The Asia Foundation and The Daily Star jointly organised the roundtable on "End Violence Against Women and Girls: Sharing Ideas about Workplace Violence Prevention" at The Daily Star Centre.
Speaking at the roundtable, Hameeda Hussain, convenor of Sramik Nirapotta Forum, said that in
order to stop violence against women, the High Court provided some legal instructions in 2009 as a preventive strategy that states every institution should have an anti-sexual harassment committee. This has not been implemented properly yet -especially in garments and tannery industry.
"We should ensure the monitoring and implementation of this directive - whether the committees have been formed or not, whether they are working neutrally or on behalf of the management body," she added.
Nobonita Chowdhury, director of Brae's Preventing Violence Against Women Initiative said, "If we can ensure a good environment...
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both men and women will be guaranteed a violence- and exploitation-free workplace."
At the same time, a forum can be arranged for informal sector workers. Of the labour force, 35 percent are women, and of them, an overwhelming majority work in the informal sector, she added.
Farzana Khan, general manager of SME Foundation, mentioned that women's promotions are not given duly, and their qualifications are often overlooked in large organisations.
Md Barkat Ali, deputy manager of Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST), said, "Apart from the 2009 HC guidelines, we have Women and Children Repression Prevention Act 2003, Domestic Violence (Prevention and Protection) Act 2010, Bangladesh Labour Act 2006 and the latest Civil Service Act 2018 to fight against sexual harassment, but we must first be aware of the law."
Bangladesh Mahila Parishad's Joint General Secretary Shima Moslem said, women in the informal sector must be
informed about the guidelines so that they can identify what behaviour falls under sexual harassment.
According to a 2018 study conducted by ActionAid Bangladesh, 65 percent of professionals are not familiar with the HC guidelines.
Khadija Akter, treasurer of Awaj Foundation, a grassroots labour rights NGO, said women usually don't want to complain to the (prevention] committees as in many cases, they face retaliation from harassers.
Sabina Sultana, senior programme officer of the government's Multi-Sectoral Programme on Violence against Women, suggested that every organisation can arrange a weekly meeting for employees' issues and check the complaint box regularly.
Sultana also mentioned the 24-hour national helpline 109 to report violence against women and the Joy app that directly connects with the helpline, local police station and FnF numbers in case of any emergency.