Workers at AA Yarn Mills Limited blocked the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway in Sreepur of Gazipur on Thursday to protest one month of unpaid wages, disrupting traffic.
The workers said the factory was supposed to pay salaries by the seventh working day of each month, but management repeatedly failed to do so. On Thursday, when the factory did not release September wages as promised, workers began a sit-in inside the factory from 8:30am.
Gazipur Industrial Police Inspector Abdul Latif said repeated delays in wage payments prompted the protest. Monir Hossain, the factory’s HR officer, said the unpaid wages would be settled on Sunday, and Friday and Saturday have been declared general holidays at the factory.
Police, including industrial, highway, and local officers, were deployed to manage the situation. Several workers were injured during clashes with police, who used rubber bullets and tear gas, and were treated at local clinics, pharmacies, and Mymensingh Medical College Hospital.
Workers also complained that all benefits had been withdrawn, forcing them to cover transport costs from a monthly salary of Tk12,000, making household expenses and school fees difficult to manage.