In 2017, Bangladesh saw the opening of the first Academy of Work, a three-month long programme for trade unionists in the country. Today, they share their experiences!
Looking back at 2017, Bangladesh saw the opening of the first Academy of Work (AoW), a cross-sectoral, residential training programme for trade unionists in the country. To make this happen, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) joined hands with the Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS) and the BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD), which is housed under the country’s leading BRAC University.
A testimony of the remarkable success of the program scheduled to continue in 2018, sixteen among the participants share the most memorable experiences they have gained throughout the programme.
Abdul Halim, Jatiyo Sramik League
"Not only have I been introduced to various academic concepts and theories, relevant to take the trade union movement forward, such as global supply chain, but I have learned to see past my own sector and I have developed an intention to work with other sectors, too."
A.B. Siddik Mintu, Bangladesh Nirman Sramik Union League
"Apart from the academic knowledge gained during the training programme, I have gained the experience of working with trade union activists from various sectors and have created a powerful network, which I am sure play a major role to take the Trade union movement forward."
AKM Rafiqul Islam, Bangladesh Rural Development Board Karmachari Union, Jatiyo Sramik League
"Speaking for myself, the most important thing I am taking back from the Academy is a whole set of skills (i.e. negotiation, collective bargaining, communication etc.). Although I had prior experience and working knowledge of these skills, the academic foundation was missing."
Fazlul Kabir Mintu, Bangladesh Trade Union Center, Chittagong
"I have gained a more in-depth knowledge on national and international laws. I have also learned how effective social dialogue can be effective in ensuring the rights."
Jesmin Juy, Garments Workers Unity Forum
"After spending 4 months at the Academy of Work, I now have a clearer picture on the mechanism of the global supply chain, which helps me to see how workers in involved in Backward Linkage activities are involved."
Kanak Barman, Jatiyo Sramik Jote
"The Academy of Work training programme has strengthened my life’s mission as a trade union activist. I strongly believe that a positive change is possible with the help of an effective social dialogue."
Kormi Barua, Chittagong X-Ray Pathology Health Clinic Union, BTUC
"The most important thing that I am taking back from the academy is the belief that all problems can be tackled with intelligence, maturity and unity. I am happy to carry with me the academic knowledge gained during the training programme, which along with my work experience has made me more confident than before."
Maksuda Khatun, Postal & Dakkarmochari Union
"I have gained a lot of confidence and a sense of optimism which makes me believe that a combination of knowledge and unity can solve all our problems and take the trade union movement forward."
Md. Abul Kalam, Bangladesh Labour Federation
"I always believed that Trade Unions have an undeniable role to play to establish a society based on unity and social justice. My months spent at the Academy of Work has only made this belief grow much stronger than before."
Md. Nahidul Hasan Nayan, Sammilito Garments Workers’ Federation
"Not only have I learned about the usefulness of international instruments, i.e. OECD guidelines and the role of trade unions to employ the instruments in their favour but I have also bettered my communication skills."
Md. Rezaul Karim, United Federation of Garment Workers
"The Academy of Work training programme has provided me with the necessary theoretical knowledge and skills which has solidified my foundation and strengthened my role as an instructor."
Md. Yeamin Miah, Bangladesh Jatiyo Sramik Federation
"Many the academic theories and concepts were completely alien for me, such as the concept of Global Supply Chain and Bangladesh’s position in that chain. I would say that learning about such concepts a valuable experience that I have gained from the Academy of Work."
Mohammad Khorshed Alam, Bangladesh Jatiyotabadi Sramik Dal
"Although, I had extensive experience as a trade unionist before joining the Academy of Work, the programme has given me a solid insight into the international context which has broadened my vision on the global trade union movement."
Morium Akhter, Bangladesh Textile and Garment Workers’ League
"Apart from the academic knowledge gained at the Academy of Work which has made my foundation stronger as a trade union activist, I have also formed a wider network outside my own RMG sector."
Shahnaz Parven, Shadhin Bangla Garment Workers’ Federation
"Not only have I gained a more in-depth knowledge on the dynamics of leadership skills but I have also formed strong bonds with the AoW 2017 Alumni who belong to various sectors."
Tahmina Rahman, Bangladesh Apparel Workers’ Federation
"The experience at the Academy has taught me to go beyond my sector and see the bigger picture. I have learned that there is nothing unattainable with the power of unity (over all the sectors) and social dialogue."
For more information on the Academy of Work and the work by FES in Bangladesh contact the FES Bangladesh Office.
What are the challenges and opportunities facing organized labour in Bangladesh? We spoke with civil society leader Shakil Ahmed.
A participatory higher education system and a prosperous and socially just labour market are at the core of the ongoing work by the Dhaka-based team…
Dhaka (Bangladesh) – Public and private sectors should be included in the design and implementation of any reforms to address the issues around…
Dhaka (Bangladesh) ― FES and partners contribute to constructive social partnerships and harmonious industrial relations in the lead up to the Rana…
Bringing together the work of our offices in the region, we provide you with the latest news on current debates, insightful research and innovative visual outputs on geopolitics, climate and energy, gender justice, trade unions and social-ecological transformation.
India is navigating a volatile global order driven by power rivalries, economic shifts, tech disruption, and climate change. At the FES India National... More
Call for Proposals of a regional research study exploring how feminist principles can be effectively applied in international policymaking across the... More
“If this continues for another few years, I fear we’ll have no school, no crops, and no future left in Tanguar Haor,” said Md Mudassir Alam,... More
This site uses third-party website tracking technologies to provide and continually improve our services, and to display advertisements according to users' interests. I agree and may revoke or change my consent at any time with effect for the future.
These technologies are required to activate the core functionality of the website.
This is an self hosted web analytics platform.
Data Purposes
This list represents the purposes of the data collection and processing.
Technologies Used
Data Collected
This list represents all (personal) data that is collected by or through the use of this service.
Legal Basis
In the following the required legal basis for the processing of data is listed.
Retention Period
The retention period is the time span the collected data is saved for the processing purposes. The data needs to be deleted as soon as it is no longer needed for the stated processing purposes.
The data will be deleted as soon as they are no longer needed for the processing purposes.
These technologies enable us to analyse the use of the website in order to measure and improve performance.
This is a video player service.
Processing Company
Google Ireland Limited
Google Building Gordon House, 4 Barrow St, Dublin, D04 E5W5, Ireland
Location of Processing
European Union
Data Recipients
Data Protection Officer of Processing Company
Below you can find the email address of the data protection officer of the processing company.
https://support.google.com/policies/contact/general_privacy_form
Transfer to Third Countries
This service may forward the collected data to a different country. Please note that this service might transfer the data to a country without the required data protection standards. If the data is transferred to the USA, there is a risk that your data can be processed by US authorities, for control and surveillance measures, possibly without legal remedies. Below you can find a list of countries to which the data is being transferred. For more information regarding safeguards please refer to the website provider’s privacy policy or contact the website provider directly.
Worldwide
Click here to read the privacy policy of the data processor
https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en
Click here to opt out from this processor across all domains
https://safety.google/privacy/privacy-controls/
Click here to read the cookie policy of the data processor
https://policies.google.com/technologies/cookies?hl=en
Storage Information
Below you can see the longest potential duration for storage on a device, as set when using the cookie method of storage and if there are any other methods used.
This service uses different means of storing information on a user’s device as listed below.
This cookie stores your preferences and other information, in particular preferred language, how many search results you wish to be shown on your page, and whether or not you wish to have Google’s SafeSearch filter turned on.
This cookie measures your bandwidth to determine whether you get the new player interface or the old.
This cookie increments the views counter on the YouTube video.
This is set on pages with embedded YouTube video.
This is a service for displaying video content.
Vimeo LLC
555 West 18th Street, New York, New York 10011, United States of America
United States of America
Privacy(at)vimeo.com
https://vimeo.com/privacy
https://vimeo.com/cookie_policy
This cookie is used in conjunction with a video player. If the visitor is interrupted while viewing video content, the cookie remembers where to start the video when the visitor reloads the video.
An indicator of if the visitor has ever logged in.
Registers a unique ID that is used by Vimeo.
Saves the user's preferences when playing embedded videos from Vimeo.
Set after a user's first upload.
This is an integrated map service.
Gordon House, 4 Barrow St, Dublin 4, Ireland
https://support.google.com/policies/troubleshooter/7575787?hl=en
United States of America,Singapore,Taiwan,Chile
http://www.google.com/intl/de/policies/privacy/
