Bangladesh Garment Workers March For Higher Wages

In order to raise wages, Bangladesh garment workers continued to carry out violent demonstrations, and hundreds of workers blocked roads in the capital Dhaka. Although the owners of the government and garment factories have already ensured their pay rise, garment workers continue their protests, demanding that the minimum monthly wage be up to 5000 Taka, among other financial advantages.

About 10000 workers in the clothing company, including Wing clothing company, Lu Xing clothing company, image fashion company, Tunic fashion company and Saroj clothing company, staged a protest, blocking about 2 sales of Farmgate-Mirpur highway and destroying about 10 factories in the area.

The furious workers also fought against the police, resulting in several workers being injured.

Labor and Employment Minister Musharraf Hossain assured garment workers that they would raise their basic wage level in 3 months. In order to control the situation, the garment manufacturers association and workers have a dialogue. During the consultation process, workers asked for attendance allowance, overtime pay, annual reward and holiday bonus. The clothing manufacturers association promised that they should be paid according to the existing standards. In addition, the owners of garment factories assure workers that they will provide these additional facilities if the government instructed them.

There are 4500 factories in Bangladesh's clothing sector, accounting for 80% of the total exports of the country, providing employment for about 3 million workers.