Workers of R&G (BD) Garments Limited in Gazipur were met with a closure notice at the factory's main gate on Monday morning, sparking protests.
The workers demanded the reopening of the factory and soon blocked the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway around 8:45am, halting traffic on both sides and causing severe disruption for passengers and drivers.
After being informed, the Industrial Police arrived at the scene and convinced the workers to lift the blockade. By 9:30am, the road was cleared, and traffic flow returned to normal within half an hour.
The protests occurred in the Bhabanipur area of Gazipur Sadar upazila. Around 1,300 workers are employed at the factory.
Joydebpur police station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Abdul Halim explained that on Sunday, workers had protested with a 12-point demand, including increases in attendance bonuses, night shift allowances, and tiffin allowances, as well as the removal of the factory's human resource and administration manager.
On that day, they blocked the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway for four hours, from noon to 5:30pm.
After discussions with the Industrial Police, local police, military, and factory authorities, it was decided to close the factory for two days, on Monday and Tuesday.
However, as many workers were unaware of the closure, they arrived for work on Monday morning and protested after seeing the notice. The highway was subsequently blocked but cleared after police intervention.
Sabbir Ahmed, assistant general manager (AGM) of R&G (BD) Garments Limited, said that the factory was closed for two days as per the Labour Act. Despite the factory authorities agreeing to many of the workers' demands on Sunday, the workers still blocked the highway. To prevent potential vandalism, the factory issued the closure notice.
Superintendent of Police (SP) of Gazipur Industrial Police Mohammad Sarwar Alam noted that nine factories in the Gazipur district were closed on Monday. Of these, four were closed indefinitely under Section 13(1) of the Labour Act. One factory declared a lay-off, another closed temporarily, and three declared general holidays. Production in other factories continues as normal, with military personnel and industrial police ensuring control of the situation.