Bangladesh garment workers' protests shut 13 factories amid demand for higher minimum wages

Fresh labour unrest hit Bangladeshs garment industry on Sunday with 13 factories shut indefinitely and five others declaring a oneday holiday a day before the wage board is due to meet to continue consultations on recommending a revised pay structureProtesting workers gathered in Gazipurs Konabari and Mouchak areas prompting police to use tear gas and sound grenades to disperse them Factory owners said 50 units in the industrial zone were closedThe latest disruption comes amid weeks of protests over workers demand to raise the minimum monthly wage from 12500 taka USD 100 to 30000 taka USD 240 with demonstrations and factory shutdowns reported across key industrial beltsBangladesh is the worlds secondlargest garment exporter after China The sector employs more than four million workers and accounts for over 80 per cent of the countrys export earnings making prolonged disruption a concern for international buyers and global supply chainsThe government formed a Minimum Wage Board on November 1 to recommend a revised pay structure The board chaired by a senior district judge agreed at its first meeting to finalise its recommendations by the end of NovemberThe revised pay structure is expected to take effect from December 1 with workers set to receive their first salaries under the new scale in JanuaryThe fresh unrest on Sunday came a day after garment factory owners warned of indefinite unpaid closures at factories where workers refused to resume productionPolice and factory owners said 13 readymade garment factories were shut for an indefinite period while five others declared a oneday general holiday in Gazipur and nearby AshuliaWorkers at a garment factory rallied in Gazipurs Konabari area prompting police to rush to the scene and disperse them using tear gas and sound grenades at around 830 am local timeWorkers from other factories later took to the streets in the adjacent Mouchak area forcing management to close their unitsWorkers made attempts to gather at different locations this morning but law enforcement personnel prevented them with their prompt actions and remain deployed at every key point in the industrial area Gazipur Industrial Police Superintendent Amzad Hossain saidBorder Guard Bangladesh BGB said it had deployed 13 platoons of paramilitary personnel to maintain order and protect factories alongside police in riot gear and the elite Special Response Battalion SRB which draws personnel from the army navy air force and policeGazipur district administration officials said several platoons of the Ansar battalion had also been called out to guard the factories They said 25 executive magistrates had been assigned to lead law enforcement personnelFactory owners said 50 garment units were closed in the industrial zone including 13 shut on Sunday amid fresh unrestOfficials said production continued at most factories in Gazipurs industrial belt despite the disruptionThe Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association BGMEA said its representatives would attend the minimum wage board meeting on Monday to submit their proposal despite reluctance among some of its membersThe BGMEA however warned that its participation in subsequent meetings would depend on how the situation on the ground unfoldedThe continued protests have centred on demands for a living wage to survive with workers saying their earnings have not kept pace with rising costs of food housing transport and healthcareFactory owners have warned that prolonged disruption during the peak production season for spring and summer orders could delay shipments affect overseas buyers confidence and lead to cancellationsBangladesh supplies major international fashion brands including HampM Zara and Gap The sector has also faced pressure from rising production costs inflation and intense competition in global marketsThe protests turned violent in the first week of November with demonstrators setting ablaze police vans and public transport vehicles and blocking two major highwaysRuling Bangladesh Nationalist Party BNP activists also took to the streets in antiprotest campaigns carrying bamboo sticks to maintain order and resist what they described as infiltratorsBNP leaders have accused Hasina and her supporters of trying to destabilise the government through the protests while the former prime minister has rejected such allegations in media interviewsPrime Minister Tarique Rahmans information affairs adviser Zahedur Rahman earlier accused the deposed premier of fuelling the unrest saying Sheikh Hasina will not let the government remain in peace as long as she is aliveA studentled uprising toppled Hasinas government on August 5 2024 forcing her to flee to India The interim government led by Muhammad Yunus later disbanded the Awami League under antiterrorism legislationThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability 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