Jobs dry up, woes grow

Under the hot sun Saturday noon, two dozens of labourers were seen sitting on the streets at the capital’s Tejgaon area. More than a hundred labourers usually gather there every day. People who need labours hire them from there at an average contract of Tk 250-350. At usual time, no one sits there until the noon. But due to Covid-19 pandemic, things have changed. Day labourers were seen sitting in long queues. Only a handful of them were hired. The rest have to go back home empty handed.

Lately, the same picture was seen at different places in the capital including Azimpur, Magbazar, Karwan Bazar, Badda, Uttara, Rampura, Khilgaon, Tejgaon and Begunbari. Uncertainty and worry gripped the unemployed never like before. Needless to say labourers can save money. So, they worry of putting food before their families. 

Abdul Jabbar, a day labourer from Rampura, said the situation was already bad, and the present lockdown has made the situation even worse. “No one hires during lockdown,” he said. 

Daily income of tea stall owner Jamal Hossain has also decreased. He has closed the shop before evening. “After few days, I will have to close down the shop for good. I have a few saving. How long will it last?” he asked in despair.

Pushpita, a girl working in a beauty parlour in the capital’s Bailey Road, is also having a hard time to run her family. After paying commission to the owner from the daily income, she was already struggling to run the family of four members. The beauty parlour is now closed entirely due to Covid.

Swapna Khan is a resident of Manipuripara area of Mirpur. The family spent all their savings in the treatment of her husband who is afflicted with a complex disease. The situation led her start a fast food shop to survive with two children. The hard work paid off and she started a clothing business along with her food business. In a span of 21 years, Swapna managed to establish three showrooms one after another. 8 people worked for her. But the Corona pandemic, which hit the globe last year, has taken away everything she built with blood, sweat and tears in 21 years. The showrooms are closed for about six months due to the pandemic. But the shop rents are regular. ‘Corona put me on the road. About 50 lakh taka has been lost,” she said

Describing the plights of low and middle income people the worst, Dr Naznin Ahmed, senior research fellow of the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) said, if lockdown is strictly enforced it would hit hard the economy and low and middle income group because people now are not at a state financially to absorb the shock like that in last year.

People are facing severe hardships this year compared to last year as this time they are not at a normal state because their condition is already shattered with huge financial losses caused last time, said the economist.

The government should support small and medium entrepreneurs with cash incentives and also relieve them from repaying loans as most of them started business taking loans as they had no savings or funds. The announcement should come now, she demanded. 

"What impact would this week-long lockdown have?, she questioned mentioning that the pinch of Covid would not be over so shortly and the people should follow health guidance strictly. She advised the government to take a strong initiative to monitor people across the country...even at the villages so that everyone wears mask. Even the authorities should supply masks and hand sanitizers free of cost and aware people at rural levels too through making announcement in mikes so that everyone follows the rules.

"Enforcing lockdown after April 13 is not logical. By this time, people are mixing without maintaining social distancing. During these days, there is high risk of getting infected with the coronavirus. How would it be controlled if the situation deteriorates by this time?," she questioned with concern.

Expressing dissatisfaction over mismanagement in disbursement of stimulus funds last year, she said more effective steps need to be taken to support low-income and middle income people. 

"Last year, large enterprises were benefitted from the stimulus but small and medium scale enterprises were deprived," she said.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh Garment Workers Solidarity demanded to ensure hundred percent wages of readymade garment workers during the lockdown. The central steering committee of the organisation issued a statement signed by its president Taslima Akhter and general secretary Julhas Nain Babu.

Asking government and factory owners to take complete responsibility of the workers during the lockdown, the organisation in its statement said, "During the last lockdown, we have seen that government officials took salaries and other benefits from the government without attending offices but the opposite scenario was found in the context of garment workers."

The workers won't let this happen this time, reads the statement calling upon government to take precautionary measures.

Terming workers as a resource of the country, the statement said the industry will remain alive if the lives of workers are saved, and sought announcement to ensure hundred percent wages of the workers during the lockdown.

Economic survey of Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics shows, out of a total of 6 lakh enterprises in the non-agricultural sector, about 36 lakh enterprises are involved in wholesale and retail trade and about 46 percent of the non-agricultural sector like wholesale and retail business. Eighty-five percent of these organizations are small, with less than 10 employees. 35 percent of the country's non-agricultural employment is in wholesale and retail business. As of now, there are about 59 lakh enterprises. 

Due to the health risks of the novel coronavirus, all but the grocery stores, medicines and emergency stores were closed for one and a half months last year, she mentioned. 

The closure of shops last year disrupted the lives of millions of entrepreneurs and workers. At the moment, our economy is going through a crisis of life and livelihood like any other country in the world. The biggest fear is that we do not know how long this crisis will last. But in order to keep people alive, they have to have employment and livelihood. 

Economic activity cannot be stopped indefinitely through an uncertain situation. In that case, the question is, how long will we stop these activities? How long will we keep all the shops closed? Do we have resources to sustain the lives of billions of people including shop workers and product workers? How can we handle the growing number of people who do not stand in line for food aid and are in need of cash assistance? 

Unemployment and loss of income have increased the overall poverty of the country, according to various research surveys.

According to a report released by the World Bank on January 29, 2021, the unemployment rate in Bangladesh has risen to 5.3 percent from 4.22 percent in 2019. The unemployment rate among the youths is 10.8 percent, which according to a World Bank study is expected to reach 25 percent due to coronavirus.

The job market situation has changed drastically due to the coronavirus pandemic. Many companies are laying off employees because they are not in business, while many companies have stopped hiring new employees even though they are not laying off. According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), one in four young people in Bangladesh is unemployed due to the coronavirus crisis (26.39%).

Bangladesh is now the third of the eight countries in South Asia in terms of unemployment rate. The number of vacant posts in government service is 3 lakh 8 thousand 338. This number has crossed 4 lakh as all types of recruitment at government and private levels have been suspended for the last 6 months due to corona. More than 20 lakh educated unemployed are waiting to be appointed to these posts.

According to the latest survey by the Bureau of Statistics, the number of unemployed who have a degree at the university level is 4 lakh. Many have lost their jobs in the private sector due to the stagnation of the economy due to the impact of Corona. Millions of young people in the country have to fight for jobs with degrees from higher education institutions. Many educated graduates have to prepare for the job test for a certain period of time. Of these, thousands of young people wait for the BCS exam every year. More and more candidates are preparing for non-cadre government and private jobs. Due to the Corona situation, all the job tests are stuck. Despite announcing the date of job test in government banks, the final stage test has been canceled. There are many who are not old enough to enter the job. Naturally they are more concerned. In fact, it has greatly increased the frustration of the Corona youth community.