Demonstrating workers of Barapukuria Coal Mine have suspended their two months-long movement for returning to work and demanding arrears after getting partial acceptance from the authority.
Robiul Islam, president of Barapukuria Coal Mine Miners' and Workers' Union, said on Friday that the authority agreed to let the workers join work in phases.
“Regarding the payment of eight months' arrears, a decision will be taken after a meeting with the workers’ representative in Petrobangla in Dhaka,” he added.
Kamruzzaman Khan, managing director engineer of Barapukuria Coal Mine, said: “On Saturday, in the first phase, 212 workers’ samples were sent for the Covid-19 test. If they test negative they will be able to rejoin work after staying in quarantine for a week to 10 days inside the mine premises.”
He also said that all the 850 workers will be allowed to join work again.
The workers have been holding different programs since March to press home their demands.
Robiul Islam Robi mentioned that around 1,100 local miners excavate coal from the mine under three Chinese contractor companies–CMC, XMC, and JXMC.
Of them, 700 were supposed to get monthly Tk4,000 each as allowance during their layoff due to the Covid pandemic but in the last eight months, they neither received any allowances nor were allowed to rejoin work.
Meanwhile, the contracting companies forced 400 workers to stay inside the mine and work without allowing them to meet their families.