Bangladesh’s garment factory owners and workers agreed on Wednesday that a revised minimum wage for the country’s readymade garment sector will be implemented in December, with workers receiving the new pay from January, representatives of both sides said. Read Here
The agreement came at the first meeting of the newly formed Minimum Wage Board for garment workers, held at the board’s office in Dhaka’s Segunbagicha. Babul Akter, the workers’ representative, told journalists employers had accepted the demand for a December start. ABM Shamsuddin, representing factory owners, backed the statement. Syed Azad Subhani, the board’s new chairman, presided over the meeting.
“New wages will be implemented in December. Workers will receive their new salaries from January,” Akter said, urging workers to return to their factories and resume work.
Also Read: Dhaka Says ‘Fugitive Forces’ Infiltrated Garment Workers’ Wage Protest
The government formed the six-member board on Nov 1 after days of demonstrations and clashes between workers and police. Protesters want the minimum monthly wage raised to 30,000 taka ($245) from 12,500 taka, citing higher food, housing, transport and healthcare costs. They have also demanded an end to the blacklisting of workers and what they call unjust layoffs. It was not immediately clear what new minimum the board would recommend.
The unrest has spread across industrial areas including Mirpur, Ashulia, Hemayetpur, Gazipur and Narayanganj, where workers clashed with law enforcement again on Wednesday. Road blockades have disrupted operations, and hundreds of factories have temporarily suspended work. Protests on Nov 1 alone affected 529 factories and nearly one million workers, according to industry reports.
The current wage, announced in November 2023, raised the minimum from 8,000 taka, an increase of 56.25 percent, and is due to expire next month.
The garment industry employs about four million people and generates more than 80 percent of Bangladesh’s export earnings, supplying many leading Western brands.