For Ruma Aktar, a sewing machine operator at a garment factory in Gazipur, one single item has transformed her work and improved her life: A pair of reading glasses.
Ruma’s work is demanding, with each worker expected to produce thousands of garments a day. Precision is essential, and even small mistakes can slow production or result in rejected items.
“Before I got the glasses, it took me a long time to thread the needle. Now I can thread it in just a short time. I make far fewer alterations than before,” she said.
In Bangladesh, home to the world’s second-largest garment industry after China, some factory owners are working on supplying more glasses to workers to boost productivity. The garment sector contributes about 11% of gross domestic product and employs around four million workers.
VisionSpring, a global nonprofit social enterprise supplying affordable glasses to people in poorer countries, estimates that roughly one in three Bangladeshi garment workers need glasses but do not have them.
The group has supplied glasses that cost less than 10 dollars per pair to some workers through a partnership with the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association.
Ella Gudwin, chief executive of VisionSpring, said the benefits were immediate, as workers were better able to meet quality and production targets. Better vision also reduces mistakes such as skipped stitches, uneven hems and misplaced buttons, cutting the need for rework, she said.
Fahima Akhter, a director of Bangladeshi garment company Masco Group, said Bangladesh’s garment sector should make vision screening a standard workplace benefit.
“Having a clear vision is not a luxury, it is a necessity now,” she said. — AP
