Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) denied on Saturday that workers were exposed to health hazards in garment factories engaged in produucing sand-blasted jeans.
A Switzerland-based non-governmental organisation the Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC), in a recent report reiterated that thousands of workers were exposed in Bangladesh to deadly diseases during sand-blasting of jeans for certain world brands, which import millions of pieces of the garment products from the country every year.
However garment manufacturers in Bangladesh claimed that they had stopped manual sand-blasting long ago and now a reduced volume of work is done by machines which absorbs hazardous dust itself.
"It is a fresh campaign against us, as our garmet exports continue to rise despite slowdown in Europe and debt crisis in the United States," a leader of the BGMEA told the FE.
This is the second negative report against Bangladesh apparel sector in a single month, he said.
War on Want, a London-based charity, which fights against poverty in developing countries, alleged early last month (March) that garment workers engaged in Bangladesh in making goods for Olympic sportswear companies like Adidas, Nike and Puma had been ill treated.
BGMEA promptly refuted the report of the London-based charity.
However, a section of garment exporters fear that such negative campaign is likely to become an impediment to production and export of some specialised apparel products in the country.
The latest report titled "Deadly Denim," said a number of illness caused among tens of thousands of Bangladeshi garment workers was due to exposure to sand-blasting of jeans at relevant garment factories.
Bangladesh garment factories export some 100 million pieces of sand-blasted jeans for world's leading brands including H&M, Levi's, C&A, D&G, Esprit, Lee, Zara and Diesel and said they were being manufactured in their factories.
The product is proceesd in some 2,000 garments factories in Bangladesh, the report said.
The CCC said Denim is still being sand-blasted by hand in Bangladesh to satisfy the fashion trade despite the dangers it poses to the health of workers.
The CCC said the procedure could cause workers to develop the incurable lung disease silicosis, which often proves fatal. Even when the process is carried out mechanically, the workers are exposed to silicone dust.
The procedure can cause workers to develop the incurable lung disease silicosis, which often proves fatal. Even when the process is carried out mechanically, the workers are exposed to silicone dust, according to the CCC.
The RMG exports of Bangladesh rose by 15.80 per cent to $10.95 billion in the first seven months of the current FY 2012 to June, compared to the exports in the corresponding months in the previous FY.
The exports were $17.90 billion in FY 2011, which were 43 per cent higher than the exports of the previous fiscal.
The European Union and the United States imported RMG products from Bangladesh more than 55 per cent and 45 per cent respectively in the past FY.