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Female employment under export-propelled industrialization of skilled workers, the latter group benefited more, at least in terms of wages and possibly also in terms of employment, from the restructuring process (see Table 13). Because female employment in the RMG sector is concentrated in low-skill jobs, the bulk of female workers could not benefit from restructuring at the firm level. 5. The gender implications of technological improvements Recent changes in the composition of outputs in the country’s RMG sector have led to a diffusion of technological innovations. These innovations, such as computer-aided design (CAD) systems for grading patterns and marking, have been concentrated in the preassembly (pre-sewing) phase of garment manufacture, where female employment is marginal. As a result, if gender segregation in the manufacturing process cannot be dismantled, women workers will simply be bypassed by the introduction of these new technologies. The key to breaking down this gendered division of labour lies in enhancing the skills of the female workers in the RMG sector, particularly through: 1) increased formal schooling (to improve language and mathematical skills); 2) enhanced availability of RMG-oriented training facilities at an affordable price (such as market-responsive, publicly funded training programmes); and 3) greater possibilities for on-the-job training (geared to facilitate upward occupational mobility). Thus, developing the capacity of female workers will allow them to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the introduction of new technologies in garment manufacturing. For example, the computer-controlled automated cutting systems replacing manual cutting techniques are more gender-friendly but require special training. Such techniques diminish the need for physical strength and, thus, will not drive away female workers from this segment of the garment processing chain. Similar examples may be cited for the postsewing phase. In other words, enhanced educational qualification coupled with targeted skill development of the female workers in the RMG enterprises constitutes the real basis for sustained access to more remunerative jobs. Incidentally, success in the unfolding global economic scenario will increasingly require firms to foster such skills; those failing to do so will have to accept an erosion in their market share and depressed rates of return. The inability of entrepreneurs 241
Women’s employment in the textile manufacturing sectors of Bangladesh and Morocco (and the government) to elaborate forward-looking (positive) restructuring strategies based on enhancing the skills of female labour will lead to redundancy for their workers. Thus the response to this fast-evolving situation in the RMG sector must come from both government and entrepreneurs. It is imperative that the government increase gender equity-sensitive allocations, particularly social sector expenditure targeted toward female education and skill development. The picture emerging in countries where industrial restructuring has taken place without attention to gender concerns is a swing back from female intensity in manufacturing, where women have been effectively replaced by male workers (Joekes, 1995; Pearson, 1998). Entrepreneurs, on the other hand, will have to appreciate that they tend to lose out in the long run by not investing in the capability development of women workers. However, entrepreneurs can argue for a cost sharing arrangement with the government in order to underwrite the risks of seeing trained female workers desert to their competitors. V. The implications of globalization for female employment in Bangladesh’s apparel sector As indicated above, the phenomenal growth of the exportoriented RMG sector has led to a high degree of feminization of formal manufacturing employment in Bangladesh. The sector retained its growth momentum in the face of stiff competitive pressure and, in fact, has been able to offer increased wage rates to its workforce over time. However, the female workers remain trapped in the low-skill, low-wage segment of processing activities in RMG factories. Whether current RMG growth rates will be sustainable in the future, whether women will be able to continue to access employment opportunities stimulated through such growth, and whether there will be transfer of technology and increase in productivity to the extent that will lead to wage increases in real terms are important issues of concern for Bangladesh’s RMG sector. Some of them are taken up in this section. 1. The post-MFA textile and apparel trade The dynamics of global trade in textiles and apparel has important ramifications and implications for Bangladesh’s exportoriented RMG sector. World trade in textiles and apparel developed since 1974 under the restraining rules of the Multi-Fibre Agreement 242
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Women’s Employment in the Textile
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This United Nations Research Instit
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Acknowledgements Many people have b
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notwithstanding the inertia of the
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Carol Miller is a policy analyst on
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xii VII. Contribution of different
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Introduction 1 Introduction 1 Shahr
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Introduction Table 1: Basic indicat
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Introduction women have been tradit
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Introduction The chapters on Bangla
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Introduction occurs, on average, at
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Introduction women workers related
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Introduction in low-income countrie
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Introduction by repaying their “d
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Introduction participate in labour
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Introduction their bargaining power
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Introduction processing zones hypot
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Introduction IV. The case studies T
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Introduction experience in garment
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Introduction V. Conclusion Although
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Introduction improved technology. T
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Introduction References Afsar, R. (
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Introduction Household Power Relati
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Wage discrimination by gender in Mo
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Gender and employment in Moroccan t
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Gender dimensions of labour migrati
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Table 1: Total number of male and f
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Becoming a garment worker 5Becoming
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Becoming a garment worker garment w
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Becoming a garment worker Table 1:
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Becoming a garment worker 2. “I e
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Becoming a garment worker out that
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Becoming a garment worker being. Th
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Becoming a garment worker support t
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Becoming a garment worker they firs
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Becoming a garment worker V. Conclu
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Becoming a garment worker is a job
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Becoming a garment worker Endnotes
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Becoming a garment worker Cole P. D
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Women’s employment in the textile
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