As dawn breaks over Mirpur in the capital, the narrow alleys begin to stir. Women emerge from tin-roofed shacks, while men, their faces still heavy with sleep, make their way towards nearby garment factories. Within hours, the rhythmic hum of sewing machines will fill the factories, marking the start of another workday in an industry that drives Bangladesh’s export economy.
The ready-made garment (RMG) sector accounts for around 80% of the country’s export earnings, producing clothes for global brands and retailers, including Walmart, H&M, Zara, Levi’s, Marks & Spencer and Primark.
The industry employs around four million workers, more than half of them women. While it provides livelihoods for millions and remains a cornerstone of the national economy, the living conditions of the people who sustain it tell a different story.
For many workers, the struggle begins long before they reach the factory floor and continues long after their shifts end.
Sajeda Begum, 40, has spent more than 12 years working in garment factories in Mirpur. A mother of five, she lives with her unemployed husband in a single-room shack near her workplace.
After long and exhausting hours at the factory, she takes home 12,800 taka a month, an amount disappears as soon as she receives it.
She pays 5,500 taka in rent, 500 taka for electricity and around 6,000 taka for food and groceries, leaving virtually nothing for medical expenses, her children’s education or unexpected emergencies.
“The budget constantly runs through my head. Any disruption to this arrangement would leave me in distress,” she said.
A few pieces of clothing hang from the walls of Sajeda’s cramped room, while household items she bought after months of saving occupy a corner. The modest belongings offer glimpses of a life built around small purchases and careful calculations, with little room for comfort or financial security.
Sajeda’s experience is far from unique. Around garment factories in industrial hubs such as Mirpur, Savar, Ashulia and Gazipur, countless workers live in overcrowded accommodation with limited access to adequate civic amenities. Their modest wages leave little room to save, making even routine expenses a source of anxiety.
Some leave their children in their villages because they cannot afford to raise them in the city. Others struggle to pay for their children’s education while meeting the costs of food and accommodation. For many, seeking medical treatment means taking on debt or sacrificing other essential expenses.
Rising living costs have fuelled the latest week-long protests amid growing labour unrest across major garment manufacturing hubs, disrupting production at hundreds of factories this week.
Under the minimum wage structure set by the government in 2023, the monthly minimum wage for garment workers is 12,500 taka. Workers in the highest of the four categories can earn 15,035 taka, while overtime can increase some workers’ monthly incomes.
The wage structure has not been revised since then, even as workers continue to grapple with the rising cost of food, housing, healthcare and education.
For many, the minimum wage is barely enough to cover the essentials, leaving little protection against illness, debt or other financial shocks.
Faruk Mia, 32, who works at a garment factory in Mirpur, knows this struggle well. His wife is also a garment worker, but even with both of them earning, the couple have been unable to build a financially secure life for their family.
Their two children live with relatives in Shariatpur because their parents lack the time and financial means to care for them in Dhaka.
“Initially, I only used to work at a factory, but the financial pressure eventually forced my wife to take up a job,” he said.
He used to send 5,000 taka a month to support their children. That, too, has become difficult after his wife underwent surgery for a tumour, leaving the couple in debt.
“We often have to borrow money to run our household, leaving us with little or nothing to cover medical treatment or other emergencies,” Faruk said.
For the couple, two incomes have not translated into financial stability. Instead, much of what they earn goes towards meeting immediate needs and repaying debts, leaving little to fall back on when a crisis strikes.
Workers say their purchasing power has not improved significantly, making it increasingly difficult to sustain themselves on the current minimum monthly wage.
Every year, hundreds of thousands of people migrate to Dhaka in search of better livelihoods and the hope of changing their fortunes. Many arrive from rural areas, driven by poverty, limited employment opportunities and the desire to provide their families with a better future.
For a significant number, garment factories offer one of the few accessible sources of regular employment. Yet securing a job does not necessarily mean escaping poverty.
Workers exchange their time and physical labour for modest wages, often spending much of their earnings simply to remain in the city and continue working.
Mohammad Hossain is one of them. Poverty prevented him from pursuing his education, eventually pushing him to move to Dhaka in search of work.
“I found work as an ironman in a garment factory. Working in this heat is extremely difficult, but I have no choice,” the 28-year-old said.
Hossain lives in a shared room in Mirpur and spends between 7,000 taka and 8,000 taka a month on food and accommodation alone. After covering these basic expenses, little remains for savings or other needs.
His earnings are enough to keep him going, but not enough to afford the things many people take for granted.
“I couldn’t afford to buy a kilogramme of beef in a year,” he said.
For Hossain, the statement reflects more than an inability to afford a particular food. It captures the narrow limits within which he must organise his life, where even an occasional purchase remains out of reach.
The hardships faced by garment workers are rooted in a complex economic reality.
Bangladesh’s RMG industry operates in a highly competitive global market, where pressure to keep production costs low and the prices offered by international buyers can affect factories’ ability and willingness to raise wages and improve working conditions.
Yet behind the billions of dollars generated by garment exports are workers whose daily lives are often defined by long shifts, cramped living spaces and financial insecurity.
For women such as Sajeda, the burden extends beyond earning a living. As a mother of five, she must also worry about her children’s food, education and future, even when her own health is deteriorating under the pressure of work.
Each morning, as she walks towards the factory, the calculations of survival continue to run through her mind: rent, food, electricity and the needs of her children. By the time she returns home in the evening, her fingers ache and her back feels strained.
But rest offers only temporary relief.
The next morning, she will have little choice but to return to the factory floor, while the hope of a better life remains entangled in the threads of the work that sustains them.
“I started to feel unwell recently because of the intense pressure at work.”