The expansion of wage labour and the message of May Day
1 May 2026, 11:09 AM
Big Picture
Interactive: Bangladesh Labour History · 1881 - 2026 / Fight for Justice
30 April 2026, 20:55 PM
In Focus
In conversation with Richard Wolff / Can workers seize the opportunity as Western capitalism declines?
30 April 2026, 22:10 PM
Big Picture
Beyond reform: Securing dignity for Bangladesh’s workers
30 April 2026, 22:20 PM
Unheard Voices
A closer look at Bangladesh’s new labour law: Gains and gaps
30 April 2026, 22:13 PM
Big Picture
Why Rana Plaza survivors are still protesting
30 April 2026, 23:03 PM
Unheard Voices
The app treats me like a number: The uncertain lives of Dhaka’s ride-hailing drivers
30 April 2026, 21:45 PM
Unheard Voices
Justice at work for all
30 April 2026, 20:02 PM
Slow Reads Special
Between flexibility and uncertainty: The lives behind Dhaka’s food delivery
30 April 2026, 16:54 PM
Unheard Voices
Servants of an algorithm: May Day and the fight for the South Asian digital working class
30 April 2026, 16:39 PM
Unheard Voices
The untold story behind 1971’s two most haunting photographs
Because the image was published, Naib Uddin’s life came under threat.
12 December 2025, 02:00 AM
The hands that clean, the Harijans we refuse to see
Our stomachs often remain empty—not because we do not work hard, but because life is unfair
14 November 2025, 18:00 PM
The dawn of Islamic songs in Bengal
Though Muslims of undivided Bengal used to view music and dance as Hindu traditions and distanced themselves from them, they warmly embraced Abbasuddin's Islamic songs written by Kazi Nazrul Islam.
26 October 2025, 18:00 PM
A wetland losing its farmers
Men who once harvested rice now drive auto-rickshaws along the asphalt.
24 October 2025, 18:00 PM
The weight of untouchability: Rabidas community in Bangladesh
In the markets of North Bengal, the Rabidas community has long endured prejudice, their cobbler’s stools passed from one generation to the next.
12 September 2025, 18:00 PM
How Dhaka’s rickshaw pullers bear a hidden health toll
At dawn, when Dhaka is just beginning to stir, thousands of rickshaw pullers set off on their daily grind.
22 August 2025, 18:00 PM
Red July, one year on: The fight for unity, dignity, and justice must continue
It has been a year since Bangladesh freed itself from the murderous clutches of a tyrannical regime that had made corruption the rule of business, extreme arrogance of power the norm, and brutal repression its operational style.
4 August 2025, 18:00 PM
Why not a new Bangladesh for labourers?
The Daily Star (TDS): What is the current status of the Labour Reform Commission and its activities?
25 July 2025, 18:00 PM
Our finest representative of liberal politics
I did not personally know Tajuddin Ahmad, but he was a contemporary of ours, and the politics he practised was within the Awami League—though there were different strands within the party.
22 July 2025, 18:00 PM
Remembering Tajuddin Bhai
I first met Tajuddin Ahmad—or Tajuddin Bhai, as I knew him—in the 1960s, during the pre-Liberation period. After I joined the Awami League, Bangabandhu told me to meet Tajuddin Ahmad, as he would answer all my questions on politics and the party, and that he possessed deep knowledge of both politics and people.
22 July 2025, 18:00 PM
Insights from Melbourne and Dhaka
The gig economy is rapidly reshaping urban life, yet digital labour platforms fail to provide adequate support to the workers who keep this economy running.
18 July 2025, 18:00 PM
Uncovering the silent deaths of migrant women
In the shadows of booming remittance flows and the quiet resilience of Bangladesh’s labour diaspora, a disturbing reality persists: numerous Bangladeshi female migrant workers, particularly those employed as domestic help in Gulf countries, are returning home in coffins.
11 July 2025, 18:00 PM
Sattar Pagla’s Legacy: The Voice of Haor and Heart
When the traditional haor song Lechur Baganey (“In the litchi orchard…”) was repurposed as an “item song” in a recent Bengali film, it sparked an outpouring of debate among music lovers and across social media platforms.
27 June 2025, 18:00 PM
“Don’t reduce garment workers to victims—recognise their struggles”
Dr Rebecca Prentice, Associate Professor of Anthropology and International Development at the University of Sussex, has studied garment workers’ health and labour rights for over two decades.
30 May 2025, 18:00 PM
Birangona Women of Bangladesh
I stood beneath the January sun, locking eyes with a Birangona woman on a balcony above me. Her warm smile steadied my trembling heart. Inside, 21 Birangona women awaited us at Sirajganj Uttaran Mohila Sangstha. I was finally here. The year was 2010.
25 March 2025, 18:00 PM
The People in 1971
As per the blueprint of Operation Searchlight, the Pakistani army had four key targets in Dhaka city on the fateful night of 25 March 1971.
25 March 2025, 18:00 PM
‘A huge gulf separates Mujib from Bhutto’
With the much vaunted and long awaited talks between the President and Mujib still in progress, it is no time to speculate about their likely outcome.
25 March 2025, 18:00 PM
Echoes of exile: Remembering 1971, confronting the Rohingya crisis
The legacy of 1971 is, thus, not just about the past; it resonates powerfully in the present, particularly in the context of the Rohingya refugee crisis.
25 March 2025, 18:00 PM
Global Chords of Freedom
The Liberation War of Bangladesh in 1971 was not just a struggle fought on the battlefields, but a humanitarian crisis that captured the world’s attention.
25 March 2025, 18:00 PM
Bengali and Non-Bengali Riots at Karnaphuli Paper Mills
When writing a confidential report on the Bengali workers of Karnaphuli Paper Mills to the Superintendent of Police, D.I.B Rangamati, Sub-Inspector of Police Md. Nurul Islam noted with disgust and frustration:
9 June 2024, 18:00 PM