New wage structure for garment workers to take effect in December
A new wage structure for workers in the ready-made garment industry will come into effect in December. Garment workers will receive their increased salaries from January. Representatives of workers and employers agreed on this at the first meeting of the Minimum Wage Board.
The representatives disclosed the information to journalists after a meeting held yesterday, Wednesday, at the Minimum Wage Board office in Segunbagicha, Dhaka, to revise wages for garment workers. The meeting was chaired by the board’s new chairman, Syed Azad Subhani, who took office yesterday.
The meeting began shortly after 11:00 am. Among those who attended in person were ABM Shamsuddin, director of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), representing employers; Babul Akhter, general secretary of the Bangladesh Garments and Industrial Workers Federation (BGIWF), representing workers; Anwar Hossain, president of the Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Sramik Dal and a permanent worker representative on the board; and Asif Ayub, joint secretary-general of the Bangladesh Employers’ Federation and permanent employer representative. The neutral member, Dhaka University professor Mosleh Uddin Ahmed, joined the meeting online.
After the meeting, Minimum Wage Board Chairman Syed Azad Subhani told journalists, “At the first meeting, we briefed everyone on the process of determining wages. At the board’s next meeting next week, the employer and worker representatives will submit their wage proposals in writing.”
Worker representative Babul Akhter said the employer representatives had agreed that the new wages would take effect in December so that workers could receive their increased salaries in January. He added, “At the meeting, we requested the neutral member of the wage board to submit a wage proposal. We hope the neutral member will also put forward a proposal.”
Babul Akhter said, “Workers have many grievances and complaints, as well as resentment. We will address these issues gradually. We urge the government to implement labour laws.”
Addressing workers, he also said that third parties were involved in the ongoing wage movement and urged them to remain neutral and refrain from illegal activities. He demanded the immediate release of workers and labour leaders who had been arrested.
Employer representative ABM Shamsuddin said, “We are committed to completing this process by December so that workers can receive the new wages from January. We have no disagreement on this.”
Following protests by workers, the Labour Ministry formed the wage board last Sunday. However, the protests have continued despite its formation. Workers also demonstrated yesterday in Gazipur, Savar, Mirpur and Narayanganj. As a result, production was disrupted at 492 garment factories. Of these, 92 factories announced closures for one, two or three days.
Asked about the situation, BGMEA President Mahmud Hasan Khan told Prothom Alo last night, “There has been no improvement in the protest situation in the industrial areas. The situation today (Wednesday) was much the same as on Tuesday. Production has been disrupted at many factories. The first meeting of the wage board has taken place. We hope the situation will improve from tomorrow (today).”
Wage board chairman replaced
Sheikh Ashfaqur Rahman, a district and sessions judge, had taken office as chairman of the wage board last September. The chairman was replaced yesterday morning, before the board’s first meeting.
In a notification issued by the Law and Justice Division of the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, Sheikh Ashfaqur Rahman was transferred to the post of director (training) at the Judicial Administration Training Institute.
The same order appointed Syed Azad Subhani, a judge of the Pirojpur Tribunal for the Prevention of Child Violence and a district and sessions judge, as the new chairman of the wage board.
However, the notification did not state any reason for removing Ashfaqur Rahman. Multiple sources said the government had been unable to place its confidence in the outgoing chairman to determine wages in a sensitive sector such as the garment industry.
Workers urged to return to work
A tripartite meeting involving workers, employers and the government was held yesterday evening at the Labour Ministry in the Secretariat. Labour Minister Ariful Haque Chowdhury chaired the meeting.
Those present included Mahdi Amin, the prime minister’s adviser on labour and employment; Shamsur Rahman Shimul Biswas, chairman of the parliamentary standing committee on labour and employment and a labour leader; BGMEA President Mahmud Hasan Khan; BKMEA President Mohammad Hatem; and labour leaders Montu Ghosh, Nazma Akter and Taslima Akter, among others.
At a press conference after the meeting, Labour Minister Ariful Haque Chowdhury said, “We have formed a new wage board within three years in the shortest possible time. Through impartial discussions, this board will announce a reasonable and fair minimum wage by December.”
He urged workers to return to their factories voluntarily and peacefully.
The labour minister said that, on behalf of the prime minister, an initial financial assistance of Tk 100,000 had been provided through the local administration to the family of Toufiq Hossain, a worker killed during the labour protests in Gazipur.
He added that the relevant authorities had been instructed to bring those involved in the killing to justice swiftly.
Mahdi Amin said an acceptable and fair minimum wage for garment workers would be announced by December.
He further said some outsiders were entering peaceful gatherings of ordinary workers and inciting them, creating tension and engaging in violence and sabotage. Ordinary workers were not involved in such misdeeds, he added.
The ;aw enforcement agencies would handle the situation with the utmost sincerity and patience and ensure justice, Mahdi Amin added.