TITLE:
Well-Being Status of the Informal Workers in Bangladesh: An Inside into Personal, Social, and Economic Aspects
AUTHORS:
Md. Arifur Rahman, Subrata Kumar Biswas
KEYWORDS:
Informal Sector, Informal Worker, Physical Well-Being, Economic Progress, Social Satisfaction, Precarious Work, Labour Market, Bangladesh
JOURNAL NAME:
Modern Economy,
Vol.14 No.12,
December
11,
2023
ABSTRACT: The contribution of informal sector in terms of providing employment and earnings is undeniable. Nonetheless, the well-being
status of workers in this sector is under deficit and they prevail with
denied employee rights—wages, working hours, safety and security, working
environment, and so forth. Hence, this
article has analyzed the state of workers’ well-being focusing on their personal, social, and economic aspects. Applying semi-structured interviews with 255 workers from three divisions and three
broad informal sectors, conducting
several focus group discussions and key informant interviews, the study reveals the findings. Findings show that the personal
well-being of workers is very low where more than sixty percent of workers can’t spend quality time with
their family due to long working hours and overtime work pressure. They can
hardly attend different social occasions—parties, meetings, functions, congregations, and get-togethers that reflects
the low level of social well-being of workers. Whenever they have acute health
problems, nearly half of the workers can’t
get medical facilities putting down to the problems of medical expenses and
access to health facilities. Additionally, the state of economic
well-being shows that the consumption expenditure and capacity of purchasing
durable goods are under
the expected level, and have to suffer financially on account of minimum wages,
income insecurity, or have no
opportunity for extra income or no other additional income sources. Thus, the
overall well-being status of workers in the informal sector of Bangladesh is
condensed.