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"Embrace change and empower women to navigate the evolving job landscape. In the face of automation, let our workforce bloom with resilience and renewed opportunities."
The latest report on the Labor Force Survey provides a comprehensive analysis of Bangladesh’s dynamic employment profile, especially during this quarter. The economic reorganizations the nation faces are accompanied by distinguishing shifts in unemployment rates and workforce participations, especially among women.
Unemployment Trends:
Significant raise of 4 lakh in the total unemployment rate during Q4 2023 to reach at about, points fingers towards some unfold elements. Notably however, even though male unemployment went down female joblessness increased by 1.2 lakh This gap is based on several reasons where automation in the garment industry stands out as one of them.
Impact of Automation on Female Employment:
Former lead economist of the World Bank’s Dhaka office, Zahid Hussain discusses how this relates to automation and garment sector one that has historically held prominence in female employment. Certain jobs held by female workers in the past are now replaced with other machines which ultimately curtailed demand for their labor. This trend has been apparent since 2016 when females keep ditching their jobs due to the growing popularity of machines that replace manual work.
Garment Sector Transformation:
The garment industry, a key pillar of the economy in Bangladesh has seen significant changes within its workforces patterns. The section would now be composed by 57% of women workers down from the original figure that stood at a80%. More notably, many female workers show unwillingness to continue their jobs after the age of 25 and prefer to come back home in villages.
Rural Opportunities and Non-Farm Activities:
On the bright side, growth in non-agricultural activities has increased employment on rural women and thereby they get a chance to earn some money. This diversification of economic avenues may lead to the declining number of women in formal labor.
Overall Employment Trends:
While some industries are struggling in certain sectors, the employed workforce grew 70,00 temporarily by year on to reach at total workforce (employed) of 7.11 crore for last quarter of FY23-24’ Interestingly, this growth took place during the massive reduction in agricultural labour supply leading to an issue as to what forced people from agriculture into manufacturing.
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Service and Manufacturing Sectors:
The service sector registered a significant employment growth of 11.9 lakh to touch at 2.68 crore in December. The factors that may have contributed to include the emergence of online job opportunities for young people locally and internationally. Analogously, the manufacturing recorded a positive trend as more than 4.6 lakh increase in workforce was reported from 1.2 crore to about
To sum up, the labour market in Bangladesh is entering a transformational process due to automation besides the demographic shifts and economic activities. These aspects of the dynamic are essential for policymakers, businesses and individuals operating in this changing environment. In the course of adapting to these changes, a comprehensive approach is necessary for sustained and inclusive growth on all fronts.
"Adaptation is the key to resilience: As the wheels of automation turn, a workforce diversified finds new paths in the fields of change."