The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has ranked Bangladesh, along with five other Asian countries, one of the top six economies in the world in terms of annual working hours, reports BD News. (Bangladesh Observer)

The other countries are Hong Kong (China), Malaysia, Republic of Korea, Sri Lanka and Thailand. The ILO said that between 20 to over 35 per cent of the employed workforce put in more than 50 hours on the job per week.

The fact appeared in the report of the ILO Director General at the 14th Asian Regional Meeting in Busan, Republic of Korea. The meeting called for new initiatives aimed at eliminating 'decent work deficit'.

The ILO, referring to long working hours said, "Large productivity gains are not translating into substantially shorter working hours."

Citing the example of the Asian 'miracle economies,' it also said that the comparative advantage based on the intensive use of cheap and relatively unskilled labour was transitory in nature.

"Their competitiveness has eroded as countries such as Bangladesh, India, China and Vietnam can now make products more cheaply," it said, suggesting that these economies put greater emphasis on modern technology, human resources development and higher value-added production and move up the value chain.

This strategy has helped not only to maintain their competitiveness but also to capture a larger share of the benefits of globalisation.

The ILO also focused on the low labour costs and said that countries that try to exploit their comparative advantages based on low labour costs by restricting wages may end up in a vicious cycle of low productivity, deficient training and a lack of skilled jobs. "And thus unable to compete effectively in the markets for skills-intensive products," it added.