Wage demand sparks unrest, 60 factories shut
At least 60 garment factories in Ashulia and Gazipur declared holidays on Tuesday following worker protests and clashes over demands for higher wages, disrupting production across two major industrial belts.
Of the affected factories, 42 are in Ashulia, under Savar, while 18 are in Gazipur. The unrest came amid growing tensions over the proposed minimum wage for garment workers, with labour representatives demanding Tk 32,000 a month.
In Ashulia, workers at several factories reported for duty on Tuesday morning but subsequently walked out and staged demonstrations at four to five locations, demanding a minimum monthly wage of Tk 30,000.
The protests led to confrontations between workers and police, with both sides involved in chasing and counter-chasing.
Several factories subsequently declared holidays to prevent further escalation. Among them were Envoy Group, Starling Creation, Hollywood Garments Limited, CSL Knit Composite, Starling Apparels, AM Design Limited, Moon Radiowares Limited, Tech Max Limited, Next Collection, Virtual Bottoms Limited, Yagi Bangladesh Limited, Starling Styles Limited, Bando Design Limited, Sinsin Apparels Limited, Saad Fashion Limited and Reza Fashion Limited.
After 1pm, Ha-Meem Group also declared holidays at its factories.
Mominul Islam Bhuiyan, superintendent of Ashulia Industrial Police, said police fired tear gas and sound grenades to disperse workers attempting to block a road.
Industrial police and other law enforcement agencies were deployed in the affected areas to maintain order.
He also dismissed social media reports claiming that workers had been killed by police gunfire.
“No such incident has occurred,” he said.
18 factories shut in Gazipur
Meanwhile, 18 garment factories in Gazipur declared holidays as authorities moved to prevent further unrest following demonstrations by workers demanding higher wages.
The holiday announcements were made at around 10:30am on Tuesday.
According to industrial police and local sources, most garment factories opened at 8am, and workers initially joined their shifts. However, tensions emerged when workers at Ripon Knitwear Limited in Konabari and Mondol Group in Kashimpur attempted to organise protests in separate groups. Law enforcement personnel dispersed them.
Later, workers at Norp Industries in Islampur began demonstrating, demanding a monthly salary of Tk 30,000. Factory authorities subsequently declared a holiday.
At one stage, protesters gathered in the Naojor area of the Dhaka-Tangail highway and briefly blocked the road, urging workers from nearby factories to join their movement.
As more workers began gathering, authorities announced holidays at 18 factories in Naojor, Itahata, Chandna Chowrasta and Bhogra Bypass to prevent the situation from deteriorating.
Although most workers returned home, some continued their demonstrations along the highway, marching from Naojor towards Bhogra Bypass.
Additional security personnel were deployed across the industrial areas. Alongside police, 13 platoons of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and 25 executive magistrates were assigned to maintain law and order.
Ashik Sayeed, commissioner of Gazipur Metropolitan Police, said the industrial belt had remained largely normal since morning, but authorities decided to close 18 factories as a precautionary measure.
He said industrial police, metropolitan police, BGB, SRB, Ansar and intelligence personnel were working together to maintain stability.
Workers demand Tk 32,000 minimum wage
The latest unrest comes amid ongoing negotiations over a new minimum wage structure for garment workers.
At the second meeting of the Minimum Wage Board on Monday, workers’ representatives proposed a monthly minimum wage of Tk 32,000. The employers’ representatives, however, did not submit a counterproposal and sought an additional week to consult factory owners.
Speaking to journalists after the meeting, Wage Board Chairman Syed Azad Subhani said employers had been asked to submit their proposal within the next four working days. Otherwise, the board would determine the wage structure on its own.
Employers’ representative ABM Shamsuddin said unrest in industrial areas had prevented them from collecting proposals from all factory owners, prompting the request for additional time.
Workers’ representative Babul Akhtar presented arguments and supporting data in favour of the Tk 32,000 proposal.
Before the meeting, five alliances of workers’ organisations had demanded a minimum monthly wage of Tk 32,131. They also proposed that basic pay account for 60 per cent of gross wages, house rent for 50 per cent, and the annual increment be fixed at 15 per cent.
Representing 55 registered garment workers’ federations, the five alliances submitted a memorandum outlining their proposed wage structure.
The memorandum called for a comprehensive review based on 12 criteria, including workers’ cost of living, the government pay scale and minimum wages in other Asian countries. It also cited garment-sector wage structures in Cambodia, Pakistan, India and Vietnam.
Worker representatives said around four million people are employed in Bangladesh’s garment industry, out of a national workforce of approximately 75 million.
They stressed the need for a realistic and impartial wage structure that would ensure workers’ decent living standards and economic security.