Bangladesh’s labour organisations have called for workers to be represented in the country’s official delegation to the COP31 climate summit, alongside fair compensation for climate-related losses and stronger protection of jobs and livelihoods during the transition to a low-carbon economy.
The demands are set out in the Bangladesh Workers’ Charter for COP31, presented in Dhaka on Wednesday by the National Alliance for Just Transition Bangladesh (NAJTB), in collaboration with Manusher Jonno Foundation (MJF) and Bangladesh Labour Foundation (BLF).
The charter contains 23 demands across eight negotiation tracks, focusing on the effects of extreme heat, climate-induced displacement and industrial decarbonisation on workers, particularly those employed in the informal sector.
Speakers at the event urged the government to ensure that workers, especially women, have a meaningful role in climate negotiations and that the shift towards a greener economy does not undermine employment, wages or labour rights.
Syed Sultan Uddin Ahmmed, executive coordinator of NAJTB and executive director of the Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS), said workers contributed significantly to the national economy while bearing the consequences of a climate crisis they had done little to create.
He rejected debt-based climate finance and charity-driven approaches, calling instead for compensation that reflected actual losses and meaningful worker participation in decisions affecting their livelihoods.
Shaheen Anam, executive director of MJF, said informal workers were particularly vulnerable to climate change. They account for about 84% of Bangladesh’s workforce, she noted, making income protection, job security and decent working conditions central to a just transition.
She also highlighted the additional burden on women, who face unpaid care responsibilities and the risk of losing jobs as industries adopt new technologies.
Anam urged the government to include a woman worker in Bangladesh’s COP31 delegation, referring to the Prime Minister’s instruction to ensure worker representation.
AKM Ashraf Uddin, member secretary of NAJTB and executive director of BLF, said the green transition could not be sustainable if workers lost their jobs and incomes or were excluded from negotiations over their future.
He called on the government, the International Labour Organization (ILO) and international development partners to incorporate workers’ demands into the COP31 negotiations.
Heat threatens workers’ livelihoods
Presenting the keynote paper, Mir Mohammad Ali, an assistant professor at Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, outlined the growing impact of climate change on employment and livelihoods.
Citing World Bank estimates, he said Bangladesh lost about 250 million workdays to heat-related illness in 2024.
The charter was developed through eight consultations involving 43 organisations. Its recommendations include stronger social protection, safer workplaces, worker participation in policymaking and adequately funded programmes to retrain workers whose jobs are affected by the green transition.
Anowar Hossen, chief coordinator of NAJTB, called for collective action to address climate-related loss and damage and safeguard workers in vulnerable communities.
Government promises to consider demands
Addressing the event, Shaikh Faridul Islam, state minister for environment, forest and climate change, described the charter as timely and comprehensive. He said his ministry would make every effort to incorporate relevant demands into national and local climate policies and Bangladesh’s COP31 position paper.
He also said the government had initiated measures to generate 4,000 megawatts of solar power within three months, including 296MW for Dhaka district, pointing to potential employment opportunities in renewable energy.
The announcement comes as labour organisations seek to ensure that investment in clean energy is accompanied by decent jobs, adequate training and safeguards for workers affected by changes in the energy and industrial sectors.
A panel discussion moderated by Anam brought together Mohammad Emran Hasan, head of climate justice and natural resource rights at Oxfam in Bangladesh; Md Shamsul Islam, deputy secretary at the Ministry of Labour and Employment; Mir Mohammad Ali; and Rajekuzzaman Ratan of the Socialist Workers Front and NAJTB.
Panellists highlighted unequal access to climate finance, occupational exposure to extreme heat, technological displacement and gaps in labour protection. They called for grant-based climate finance, compensation based on evidence of losses, and the inclusion of women and informal workers in climate policymaking.
Shakil Akhter Choudhury, NAJTB coordinator and representative of Sramik Karmachari Oikya Parishad (SKOP), presented the charter, outlining the 23 demands across eight negotiation tracks.
Other participants included Max Tunon, ILO country director in Bangladesh; Amer Salim, chairman of the Standing Committee on Just Transition at the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA); and Zubaer Alam, programme officer at BLF.