The labour and employment ministry on Tuesday faced hard questions from MPs over its role in dealing with labour unrest at Tuba Garments, embarrassing the authorities in front of international buyers.
Ever since the devastating fire at Tazreen Garments and the Rana Plaza collapse, ready-made garments (RMG) buyers have pressed the government to improve working conditions for Bangladeshi labour or face a boycott of products from the country.
In a discussion on the recent unrest at Tuba Garments over the non-payment of three-months wages and festival bonuses, the parliamentary standing committee on labour and employment said the ministry should sue the owners for violating labour laws.
According to the law, owners must pay the previous month's wages by the 10th day of the current month or face legal action from the labour directorate.
Mujibul Haque, the state minister for labour and employment, did not attend the meeting because he was unwell.
Mikail Shipar, the labour secretary, answered questions posed by members of the 10-person watchdog body whose job is to ensure the transparency and accountability of the ministry.
“Why did you not intervene before the situation got out of control? Why did workers have to take to the streets to get paid? Why did you negotiate with the owners?” committee member Rezaul Haque Chowdhury told the Dhaka Tribune members had asked at the meeting in the parliament building.
Israfil Alam, another committee member, said if the ministry had intervened immediately, workers could have gotten their wages on time and the unrest could have been averted.
“Every one of the 3,500 factories in the country except for Tuba Garments paid their staff their wages on time. By going into negotiation with the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and the owners, you made it look like the government was too weak to protect the interests of the people,” he told the Dhaka Tribune.
Mikail Shipar said the workers would not have been paid if the government had opted for legal action.
“Therefore we preferred negotiation to cases,” he said.
Israfil said: “If you filed cases in May, the workers would have been paid for the months of June and July.”
Tuba Garments workers held a fast-unto-death to get their overdue wages. The company claimed it could not pay because its proprietor, Delwar Hossain, was in jail.
The BGMEA offered partial payment, but some workers rejected the offer.
Israfil Alam also raised a question on the activities of RMG buyer's group Accord and Alliance, which have been monitoring the conditions of the garment units.
“Under whose authority are Accord and Alliance interfering in our RMG sector? What is their legal status?” he asked.
Israfil said the watchdog body would discuss the issue at its next meeting.
