Abstract:
The concept of Sustainable Development provides a platform for the concept of Sustainable Working Environment and decent work. Sustainable Development Goals are major concerns in the modern world which focus on the sustainable development of the nations. Besides, this concept is a globally accepted criterion, and it is important to understand the application of this concept in developing countries, especially in the South Asian region. Moreover, the Apparel Industry is one of the prominent export industries in the South Asian context, which contributes to a large proportion of those countries' Gross Domestic Production. Consequently, the Apparel Industry in Sri Lanka plays a crucial role in the country’s development. Therefore, the researchers identified that it is important to study the application of the Sustainable Working Environment of the Apparel sector from female workers’ perspective and how it contributes to increase labour productivity. “How do the female workers’ perceive the sustainable working environment in line with increasing labour productivity?” was the identified problem of this research. The main objective of this research is to explore the female worker's perception of the sustainable working environment and its relation to increasing labour productivity. The research was conducted as field-based research in the Koggala Free Trade Zone. Two sets of workers were equally selected from five factories as the sample of this research. According to the collected data, the interviewees responded that they were highly concerned about the working environment and the benefits which they would receive. Two respondents who were from the same company, expressed that they were enjoying more benefits and a worker-friendly environment. On the other hand, others explained that they were not getting many benefits and they were seeking another company to work. As per these results, researchers identified that the workers highly perceived the sustainable working environment and they believed that kind of working environment contributed to increase their labour productivity. Moreover, it was identified that only a few companies seriously considered the concept of Sustainable Working Environment and its contribution to the increase in labour productivity, while other companies only focused on target-focused working environment. In conclusion, as per the workers’ perception, it was identified that a sustainable working environment and improvement of labour productivity have a strong relationship and the sustainable and friendly working environment make an interest for working with enthusiasm among the workers.
