AC CES S TO E D U CATI ON, EMPLOYMENT, AND HE ALTHCA RE A PPL ICAB IL IT Y TO RO H I NGYA This Act applies to declared EPZs in Bangladesh without reference to citizenship. Therefore, Rohingya in Bangladesh who meet the following definition of worker are arguably covered by this Act: “any adult (including a person employed as an apprentice) who does not fall within the definition of employer, regardless of whether his terms of employment are public or implied, who, on the basis of wages or rewards, is skilled in any industrial establishment in a zone, excluding executive and administrative staff with supervisory responsibilities.” PROTECTIO N NOT ES Rohingya employed by factories/establishments registered under the Companies Act, 1994 and operating within EPZs in Bangladesh are entitled to the protections and rights of workers as outlined in the Act (minimum wages, compensation for injuries sustained while working, maternity benefits, etc.). In accordance with Section 189, workers and employers are prohibited from engaging in obscene, demeaning, and indecent conduct towards women in the workplace. Section 196 establishes the right of “equal pay for equal work,” expressly prohibiting gender-based wage discrimination. Regardless of whether employed in the formal or informal sector, the following constitutional protections apply equally to citizens and non-citizens: • In accordance with Art. 14, the State has the fundamental responsibility in principle to emancipate the toiling masses, the peasants and the workers from all forms of exploitation. • In accordance with Art. 34(1), there is an absolute prohibition on forced labour, with the exception of individuals sentenced to rigorous imprisonment or as required by law for public purposes. Forced labour is also criminalized by Section 374 of the Penal Code, 1860, which declares forcing an individual to engage in non-voluntary labour to be a punishable offence. Bangladesh Labour Welfare Foundation Act, 2006; and Rules, 2010 (as amended up until 2015) S UMMARY This Act and the related Rules provide for the establishment of the Labour Welfare Foundation, a national organization charged with establishing a welfare fund to provide financial protections to workers in the informal and formal economy. A PPL ICAB IL IT Y TO RO H I NGYA The Act applies to all workers in Bangladesh without reference to citizenship and explicitly includes workers in both the informal and formal sectors. Therefore, Rohingya in Bangladesh who meet the following definition of worker are arguably covered by this Act: “any person employed in the formal or informal sector who is or was employed in an organization or industry directly or through a contractor in exchange for wages or money for any skilled, unskilled, manual or technical, business development or clerical work; however, this does not include any person engaged in administrative or managerial responsibilities.” 64 BE YOND REFU GE: ADVANCING LEG AL PROTECTIONS FOR ROHINGYA C OMMUNITIES IN BANGL ADESH