Lack of occupational safety and minimum legal protection for workers in the informal sector has led to a rise in workplace fatalities. Experts fear more casualties ahead, if the ever-expanding sector is not immediately given legal underpinnings, to ensure legal protection for affected labourers and their families. In 2017, the sector saw a four-year high death toll of 1,242 in both the formal and informal sectors, with 270 deaths in the formal sector, and the remaining 912 deaths in the informal sector. The agriculture sector, which employs 47% of the country's labour force, is a part of the informal sector and workers in the sector lack legal protections. He felt that if the informal sector had the necessary legal protection, workers and their families would feel much safer.

Source: Dhaka Tribune April 30, 2019 16:30 UTC