Workers of Peacock Garments and Print Limited in Sreepur, Gazipur, staged a work stoppage and blocked a connecting road on Monday morning, demanding three months' unpaid wages, including the current month's salary.
The protest involved around 500 workers, who blocked the Mawna-Sreepur road at 9:30am.
According to Riyad, Hiron, and Raj, printing operators at the factory, they have not received their salaries for June, July, and August.
Despite multiple promises from the factory authorities to clear the dues, the payments were not made. When workers arrived at the factory in the morning and inquired about their salaries, they were told the payments would be delayed further, prompting the road blockade.
The protest continued for about half an hour before industrial police and army personnel arrived at the scene. Upon their arrival, the workers lifted the blockade and held a peaceful protest inside the factory, expressing their dissatisfaction and urging the authorities to resolve the issue.
Following negotiations with the factory owners, it was agreed that the outstanding wages for June and July would be paid on August 29, while the August salary would be disbursed between September 10 and 15. The workers resumed their duties at around 12pm after the assurance.
SM Monim Rumi, production manager of Peacock Garments and Print Limited, confirmed the payment dates and said the workers returned to work after the promise to clear the dues.
Inspector Abdun Noor of Gazipur Industrial Police said that the workers blocked the Mawna-Sreepur road for about 30 minutes, from 9:30am to 10am, demanding their unpaid wages, which temporarily halted traffic.
The blockade was lifted after the authorities assured the workers that their grievances would be addressed through negotiations.
The workers alleged that for the past two years, the factory authorities have been handing out only Tk500 or Tk1,000 as partial payments. Those who refused to accept these amounts reportedly faced abuse and physical assault from the management.
"How much longer will we tolerate these immoral tortures by the factory authorities?" one worker questioned.
In a related development, around 300 workers of Hong Kong Shanghai Manjala Textile Mills Ltd staged a sit-in protest in front of their factory in the Nayanpur (Deona) area of Sreepur at 11am.
They demanded the reopening of the factory, which has been illegally closed for the past eight months, as well as lay-off compensation and payment of their legal dues.
The protest was called off after an hour, following assurances from labour leaders and former Gazipur Union BNP vice-president Enamul Haque Moni that talks with the authorities would be arranged to resolve their issues.