International Labour Day Deprived at every turn

Sukon Basfor, 33, a Harijan woman, starts her day at the break of dawn. She works tirelessly for over four hours, from 5:00am to 9:30am every day, cleaning the streets from Puran Bazar to the Bus Stand area in Sreemangal.

Yet, for her backbreaking labour, she receives a meagre Tk 550 a month.

A non-Bangalee community, Harijans live in congested pallis (colonies) under the city corporations and municipalities. Most of the Harijan pallis in the country that shelter around 100,000 souls are located in the dirtiest places of the cities.

Harijans mostly work as sweepers and cleaners, keeping the streets clean. Despite this, they are considered “untouchable” by society.

While underpaid everywhere, Sreemangal sweepers have it particularly bad, earning a fraction of what their counterparts receive in the neighbouring Moulvibazar (Tk 3,500) and Sylhet (Tk 2,200).

Even Kulaura (Tk 3,000) and Chatak (Tk 2,500) municipalities pay more. Habiganj municipality, at Tk 900, comes closest to Sreemangal’s abysmal wages, according to the Society for Environment and Human Development (SHED).

When asked why she is working for such a low salary, Sukon, with a sigh, replied, “What other option is there?”

Sukon’s plight is echoed by her husband, Pradeep Basfor. Their combined income is barely enough to make ends meet. With two children — an 18-year-old son and a 7-year-old daughter — household and educational expenses add another layer of burden. Their meagre earnings force them to strictly ration their diet, with fish and meat appearing on the table only once a month, if at all.

“Everything is so expensive these days. The little money we earn barely buys enough cooking oil, let alone rice. Sometimes, we even have to skip meals altogether,” said an emotional Sukon.

Ruplal Harijan, a 37-year-old sweeper, shares Sukon’s outrage over their negligible pay. “Day in and day out we clean this town — through scorching heatwaves, monsoon rains, and howling storms. Yet, the wages we receive are barely enough to survive, let alone thrive,” he said.

“We aren’t provided with basic equipment like shoes, raincoats, or even safety gear. Most times we buy our own brooms!” Ruplal added.

Dilip Basfor, president of the Sreemangal Upazila Committee of the Bangladesh Harijan Yokkha Parishad (BHYP), explained the community’s long history.

“Our families have resided in the Sreemangal sweeper colony since the British era around 1938. While the municipality covers the colony’s electricity and water bills, residents have no claim to the houses or land they occupy,” he said.

Sagar Basfor, general secretary of the BHYP Sreemangal, provided details about the colony’s demographics.

“Currently there are 85 families residing in this colony across 1.2 acres of land. After Bangladesh’s independence, the municipality constructed 27 single-room houses of approximately 224 square feet each. While these houses accommodated 27 families initially, the population has grown steadily, placing immense strain on the limited housing resources,” he explained.

Many have resorted to building makeshift structures out of tin sheets right next to the existing houses for more space.

The existing houses, built by the municipality decades back, are also in a state of severe disrepair. Years of neglect have caused the metal roofs to rust and the walls to crumble. Leaks are a common problem during monsoon rains.

Currently, the Sreemangal municipality employs around 37 Harijan workers. Of them, 33 work as sweepers, three on garbage trucks and one as Jamadar (Sardar).

The Jamadar is the group leader, who earns Tk 580 monthly.

Contacted, Md Mahsin Mia, mayor of Sreemangal municipality, said, “Although their salary is low, we provide them with accommodation and other facilities. I have asked them to do more tasks like regularly cleaning the drains. Then I will pay them Tk 350 daily. But they don’t agree to do such work.”

The claim of providing accommodation facilities is nothing unique, as all city corporations and municipalities provide various facilities such as housing to the community.

If we compare it to the situation with Moulvibazar, the minimum wage for Harijan sweepers increased to Tk 3,500 per month from Tk 500 in last eight years alone, according to Fozlur Rahman, mayor of Moulvibazar municipality.

Philip Gain, a researcher and director of SHED, said, “Even Bangalee cleaning staff employed on a daily basis receive more, (Tk 400 per day). Government leadership must take proactive steps to rectify these injustices,” he added.

Economist Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman expressed outrage over the abysmal wages paid to Sreemangal’s Harijan sanitation workers. “A mere Tk 550 a month is simply unconscionable in 2024,” he said.

Rahman offered a two-pronged approach to address the issue.

“Firstly, we need to shine a light on this injustice. Secondly, we must hold those in power responsible for ensuring fair treatment of essential workers,” he said at an event yesterday.

Dr Tanzimuddin Khan, professor of International Relations at Dhaka University, argued, “Instead of setting wages for each sector individually, all worker unions should unite to establish a universal minimum wage.”