New wage board for RMG workers recommended

According to official sources, the recommendation came in the wake of the workers unrest in Ashulia on the outskirts of the capital Dhaka. The garment factory owners reopened their factories yesterday. The factories remained closed since December 20 due to workers’ unrest. The report says: “After review of the present situation in the country’s  garment sector, the government can form a wage board to the workers’ salaries, allowances and other financial benefits.” But State Minister for Labour and Employment Mujibul Haque Chunnu ruled out the possibility of forming a new wage board for garment workers this year as such a wage board is due in 2018. “It is not possible to form a new garment workers wage board this year as a new wage board is due in 2018.” “Despite pressures from home and aboard after Ashulia unrest, the country’s existing labour law will not allow forming a wage board now,” he said. According to the magistrate’s report, major demand of the garment workers is giving workers a minimum wage of Tk15,000. The report said the intelligence agencies informed the government high-ups that the garment workers planned to demonstrate at the National Mausoleum during the visits by President and Prime Minister on the Victory Day on December 16. During the workers’ unrest in Ashulia, some 69 garment factories declared that they were shutting down their manufacturing units. The factories included Badhu Fashion, Star Link, Creation, Windy Fashion, Save Fashion, AM Design, Rose Dream Limited and Sataria Group Factory, the magistrate report said. In 2013 the government declared a minimum wage of Tk5,300 per month for garment industry workers. Earlier, the figure was Tk3,000.