RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY
3.3 Case Selection and Sample
Selection of sample is an important task for a researcher. Usually, in qualitative research
samples are selected purposively. For finding a rational ground of purposively selected
cases, Miles and Huberman (1994) indentified 16 strategies for qualitative researchers6. Following these principle, upon arrival at Dhaka, I spent two weeks for collecting
necessary information. During this period, I have visited different government, non-
government, international, and local organizations’ offices related to RMG industry and
labour, such as Bangladesh Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association
(BGMEA), Bangladesh Export Processing Zone Authority (BEPZA), Directorate of the
Inspection of Factory and Establishment, Ministry of Labour, International Labour
Organization (ILO), Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS), Karmajibi Nari
(Working Women), Nari Uddog Kendra (Centre for women initiative) and collected
6
The sixteenth strategies for sampling in qualitative research includes maximum variation, homogeneous, critical case, theory based, confirming or disconfirming cases, snowball or chain, extreme or deviance case, typical case, intensity, politically important cases, random purposeful, stratified purposeful, criterion, opportunistic, combination or mixed, and convenience.
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information materials. Based on the list of BGMEA, I have identified 5 hubs of RMG
industry (i.e. Mirpur, Tangi/Kona Bari (Gazipur), Fatullah (Narayanganj), Ashulia
(Savar) and EPZ (Savar). I have selected one factory purposively from each hub and two
from EPZ7 which constitute the total cases of six. The rational for selecting six cases is mainly to show different perspectives on the problems, process or event which Creswell
(1998) notes as the aim of a researcher. Generalization from the evidence of single case is
quite difficult and hence, researcher needs to focus on cross-site analyses that identify
major patterns (Herriott & Firestone, 1983). The composition of six enterprises is made
considering the location, size, and ownerships of the factories (Table-3.1).
Table-3.1: Distribution of sample factories
Size/Area Non-EPZ area
Local Ownership
EPZ Area
Foreign/Joint Ownership
Large Factory 2 1
Small Factory 2 1
Table-3.2: Size, location and workforce at sample factories Factories Area, size and ownership Number of employees
Male Female Total Non EPZ A KonaBari / Domestic 522 2377 2899 B Tangi / Domestic 796 2629 3425 C Mirpur / Domestic 120 390 510 D Ashulia / Domestic 157 648 805 EPZ E Ganakbari / Foreign 1337 4056 5393 F Ganakbari / Foreign 435 1475 1910 7 Two factories, one large and another small, are selected from EPZs to find the differences between the factories.
70 3.4 Empirical Control of the Hypotheses
As a reflexive mode of science, the extended case method embraces engagement rather
than detachment as the road to knowledge. Therefore, this approach tends to focus more
on real life experiences than interview. Instead of collecting data from the informants,
extended case method focuses more on documenting the real life experiences of the
natives with accounts of real events, struggles and drama that took place over space and
time. It also examines the historical pattern and macro structure of the society (Burawoy,
2009). As it is noted earlier, extended case method is usually used in the field where
wider knowledge is existed and the aim is to extend this knowledge, the research that
followed extended case method starts through review of literatures. Participant
observation is the key to follow the dialogical approach to understand how the research
subject understand and perceive the situation. At the same time, it has taken external
factors into account such as race and ethnicity, markets, local politics and citizenship.
Thus, this study uses multiple sources of method for acquiring real information.
• Review of published documents and archival resources by government and other national and international organizations.
• In-depth face to face qualitative interview • Participant observation
• Focus Group Discussion Review of documents
Reviewing documents is an important source of data both for qualitative and quantitative
research. Document sources give researcher a primary guideline about the cases being
studied. It is quite impossible for a researcher to accomplish the research work without
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verify and examine the figures, statistics and statements made by the respondents during
data collection through interviews and observations. Though this study followed
qualitative research design, substantial part of this study was based on quantitative data
that drawn from reviewing various documents. After arrival in Dhaka, I spent first three
weeks to visit different offices (BEPZA, BGMEA, BILS, NUK, KN, and Ministry of
Labour) and collected information through reviewing documentary sources (annual
reports, brochures, periodicals, bulletins, study reports) and browsing archival resources.
In-depth qualitative interview
In-depth interview is a face to face interactive process between researcher and the
participant and it is the hallmark of qualitative research. Deeper understanding can be
made through the dialogue of long and in-depth interviews. Talk is essential for
understanding how participants view their worlds. Among three categories of interviews
identified by Patton (1990), (e.g.; informal conversational interview, standardized open-
ended interviews and the interview-guide approach) this study followed the last category.
The prime focus of guided interviews is to elicit participants’ worldview (Rossman &
Rallis, 1998). Since, workers’ rights in the Garment factory is an interactive process of
different industrial actors (i.e. employers association, workers’ union, and the
government) and other non-traditional actors (Consumers, MNCs, NGOs, Human Rights
Organizations, International Financial Institutions and international organizations), and
extended case method analyses situation considering all internal and external forces,
inclusion of research participants from all of these segments is not only necessary but also
inevitable. Accordingly, this study conducted a number of in-depth qualitative interviews
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Table-3.3: Distribution of Interviewees
Types of Respondent Number
Women Workers(4 from each factory) (4x6) 24
Employers and Management (3 from each factory) (3x6) 18
Trade union leaders (1 from each area) (1x6) 06
Government Representatives (03) 03
Representative from employers association (02) 02
NGO staffs (1 from each) (1x4) 04
Representatives from MNCs (1 from each) (1x4) 04
Labour Experts/researchers 03
Total Interviews 64
I used separate interview checklist for workers (appendix-1), employers and
management (appendix-2), union leaders (appendix-3) and other participants (appendix-
4) so that all required information could be acquired. The interviews were conducted in
Bengali because this is the native language of the participants and the researcher as well.
While asking the question to the interviewee, I used very easy and usual words and placed
to them in very simple way so that the respondent could easily understand. The intention
was to eliminate any ambiguities in the questions, and to make sure that questions
provided to them have clear meanings and easily answerable. In case of any ambiguity, I
explained them very lucidly and in details for their better understanding and getting
appropriate answer. I prepared a sheet incorporating all important issues concerning
research questions with open space so that important information can be recorded which
Creswell (1998) mentioned as interview protocols. In some cases, I recorded the
interview8 who allowed doing so.
8
I could not use the audio tape in few cases because they did not allow recording their voices. Particularly, workers are very sceptic apprehending that it will identify them as interviewee and cause to lose their jobs.
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During field work, I spent whole working days inside the factory to become familiar
with the management and the workers as well. I neither selected the workers for interview
nor interviewed them while they were engaged in work with many others; rather, I
observed the production process and tried to understand how works are organized inside
the factory and how do workers accommodate them with labour practices. I interviewed
only management staffs inside the factory. The selection of workers’ participants and
interviews were done outside the factory9 for few reasons. First, management did not allow me talk with workers inside the factory. Every factory has some preselected
workers who used to talk with buyers or any other guests. They are well-trained by the
authority to talk in favour of the management. They are bound to do so because any
disclosure will lead them to be fired from their job since they are identified by
management as interviewee. Researcher carried three interviews within the factory
premises where participants were selected by the management to compare the different
outcomes of interviews taken in inside and outside the factory but they were not included
in the workers’ participants. Second, workers were too frenzied to talk. Every worker had
a target which she needed to comply before her leaving. They don’t have any single
moment to talk. At the same time, workers get nervous at the factory. They don’t speak
freely for fear of losing jobs. They were always under threat of losing jobs for harmful
disclosures. Thus, without establishing a good relationship, true and accurate information
cannot be found. Within a factory premise, effective rapport building is not possible. As a
9
For selecting the workers, I stood nearby the factory during the closing hour and picked two who have at least two years experience in each day while they were on the way to home, and visited their home during holiday or after their return to home following the addresses given by them. Conducting interviews at workers’ home also provided me ample opportunity to observe their residential places and surrounding environments and to talk with their husbands and other family members.
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result, the researcher conducted interview at the home of workers. Since management did
not allow the researcher to talk with workers inside the factory and workers were also
reluctant, their residences seemed to be better suited for conducting such interviews.
Among the interviewees, 30 were women workers. All of them are migrated from
rural areas for searching jobs (60%) or as an accompanying member of male heads of the
family (40%) who also came to the city for looking jobs being driven by rural poverty or
natural catastrophe. The women workers were mostly constituted by young girls between
the ages of 15 and 25 years (64%). Among the workers a large proportion are unmarried
(40%), but divorced and separated women is not too little (20%). Among married,
divorced or separated women, 67 percent workers (12 out of 18) have children of which
33% (4 out of 12) left children in their village. Working mothers on an average have two
children. The education level of the workers is very low, mostly illiterate (23%) and/or up
to primary level (53%) and have no knowledge about their rights (57%). Employment in
RMG sectors is the first experience of wage earnings of 76 percent (25 out of 30) workers
and average work experience in RMG sector is 4 to 5 years. Women’s participation
(membership) in union is also too low (13%) (Table-3.4).
Interviews with other participants (union leaders, NGO executives, government
officials, buyers’ representatives) were conducted in their respective offices with prior
appointment.
Participant observation
Observation is a close look or view of situations with some definite purpose. Marshall &
Rossman (1995) note:
Observation entails the systematic noting and recording of events, behaviours, and artefact in the social setting chosen for study…though observation, the researcher learns about behaviours and the meanings attached to those behaviours.
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Observation can range, from highly structured, detailed notation of behaviour guided by checklists to more holistic description of events and behaviour” (p. 79).
Table-3.4: Socio-demographic characteristics of the interviewed workers
Attributes Number percentage
Age (years) 16-20 21-25 26-30 31-35 36 + 12 07 03 07 01 40.0 23.5 10.0 23.5 03.0 Education None Primary Junior secondary secondary 07 09 09 05 23.3 30.0 30.0 16.7 Marital status Unmarried Married divorced 12 12 06 40.0 40.0 20.0 Living Arrangement Single
With family members
18 12 60.0 40.0 Children Yes No 12 18 40.0 60.0 Place of residence of Children
Rural Urban 08 04 67.0 33.0 Work experience (years)
2-3 4-5 6-7 8+ 08 15 05 02 26.7 50.0 16.7 06.6 Previous Training No Yes 30 00 100 000 Membership in unions Yes No 04 26 13.0 87.0 Source: Generated from the interviews
I have followed extensive site visit to observe the situation associated with the issue of
worker rights. During fieldwork, every day I entered into the factory in the morning and
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because many issues of workers’ rights are related to the environment where the
manufacturing work takes place. The direct observations provided the researcher an
opportunity to see the real situation of work safety, health and hygiene, equipment,
emergency exit, rest and dining room, child care facilities and other physical settings
inside the factory, and to compare and verify the data acquired from the documents as
well as interviews. Though observation was used to see the physical artefacts, more
emphasis was placed on participant observation to see and understand the labour process,
particularly how workers are treated by the management, how works are organized and
discipline workers, how domination and resistance takes place.
Focus group discussion
Focus Group Discussion (FGD) is a form of interviewing that takes place within a group
people who are unfamiliar to one another. In a definition of focus group Nigel Gilbert
(2008) says, “a focus group consists of a small group of individuals, usually numbering
between six and ten people, who meet together to express their views about a particular
topic defined by the researcher” (p. 227). The main logic conducting FGD is that one-on-
one interviews impoverished because the participant had not reflected on the topic and
feels unprepared to respond. People often need to listen to others’ opinions and
understandings in order to form their own and FGD creates this permissive environment.
This study conducted five FGD in workers’ residential areas with the participation of
workers’ from different factories and local residents.