Workers protest on Dhaka-Tangail highway
Staff Reporter :
Braving the law enforcers’ resistance, hundreds of factory workers in Gazipur blocked a highway in Gazipur’s Kaliakair Upazila with their fair demand for the implementation of the new minimum pay scale.
The workers of Cocola Food Products Ltd staged the demonstration on the Dhaka-Tangail highway in the Upazila’s Mouchak area around 7:30am and blocked the route for nearly two hours on Monday.
They said that they have taken to the streets as the factory authorities are not implementing the government announced pay scale for them. Life has become difficult for them with the meager income, they said.
Following their protest, traffic tailbacks stretched nearly several kilometres on the route, leaving people stuck in the streets for hours.
In a bid to disperse the protesters the law enforcers fired tear gas, leaving several workers injured.
“Police chased and baton-charged the protesters as they refused to leave the scene. The traffic returned to normal after the protesters were removed,” Saiful Alam , Mouchak Police Outpost Sub-Inspector said.
Additional policemen had been deployed in the area to avoid further unrest, he added.
The protesters said they launched the protest outside the factory at 7:30am demanding the implementation of the newly-announced government pay scale when a group of workers from inside the facility hurled brickbats at them, which flared a clash. Around 25 protesting workers were taken to hospital with injuries.
Police went to the scene to control the situation but got involved in another clash with the
protesters.
They fired a few rounds of stun grenades and tear shells and dispersed the protesters.
The government raised the minimum salary to Tk 12,500, but factory authorities have denied the new pay scale and the minimum salary for factory workers is still Tk 6,700, said Arafat Hossain, a worker.
The factory’s manager Anisur Rahman said the authorities held a discussion over the issue on Thursday and increased the monthly wage to Tk 8,000 from Tk 6,700.
“The factory was closed on Saturday. The workers resumed their work after the issue was resolved, but the protest occurred due to instigation from outsiders,” he said.
Meanwhile, the sporadic unrests in different factories including the Readymade Garment are spreading off and on in various occasions over the demand for the fair wage to lead a decent life.
The life of the factory workers has become difficult amid the soaring price hike of daily essentials. The workers said that their livelihoods are precarious for the poor income they earn from the jobs.
They said they want to work in the factories to earn, but when they do not get fair wage, they find no way but to protest in the streets to voice their concerns.
