RMG worker unrest spirals in Ashulia (2024)

The Ashulia industrial belt saw an increased number of garment factories shut yesterday amid a fresh wave of unrest among workers of dozens of units for several demands, including a wage hike.

Meanwhile, factory owners reiterated their call to ensure safety for the smooth operation of the industry as 52 factories, mostly apparel units, have been shuttered in the latest round of unrest. Of them, 19 were shut yesterday.

Md Sarwar Alam, superintendent of police at Ashulia Industrial Police-1, said 43 factories have been shut under the "no work, no pay" provision of the labour law.

Of the closed factories, 39 are members of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA). A total of 233 BGMEA member factories were open in the Ashulia area yesterday.

Worker leaders, factory owners and government officials sat for a tripartite meeting at the Ministry of Labour and Employment in Dhaka yesterday as the unrest intensified again after a relative calm last week.

They agreed to issue a joint statement on the unrest today.

Labour and Employment Secretary AHM Shafiquzzaman, who chaired the meeting, suggested that the BGMEA leaders inform the ministry about the workers' demands before issuing the joint statement.

The worker leaders raised 20 points of demand, including a review of the wage, full implementation of the latest wage structure by all the factories, an amendment to the labour law, and an increase in annual increment and attendance and tiffin allowance.

Other major demands are the introduction of a ration system for the workers, withdrawal of the biometric attendance and blacklisting of workers, withdrawal of police cases against workers, streamlining the fabric scrap business, introducing daycare centres at the factories and stopping illegal termination of workers.

Shafiquzzaman said the BGMEA leaders will inform the ministry about the decision on wage review, 10 percent increment and a few other demands before issuing the joint statement. The BGMEA called a meeting of their general members in the evening to discuss the issues.

Shafiquzzaman is hopeful that the factory owners will take positive decisions, although the current law does not allow a review of wages in five years after the last one, which was fixed in December 2023.

Nazma Akter, president of the Sammilito Garment Sramik Federation, said at the meeting that the workers have already placed their demands to the factories. She urged the government to take a decision that will help both the owners and workers survive.

Babul Akhtar, general secretary of the Bangladesh Garments and Industrial Workers Federation, said they also want safety to be restored in the sector.

The workers tried three to four times to bring back normalcy to the sector in consultation with the stakeholders, but the situation has not seen any long-term improvement, he said.

He said the government can consult any group of people to discuss the safety issue if it thinks that the union leaders are not effective.

Tapan Chowdhury, managing director of Square Pharmaceuticals, said the unrest began in the pharmaceuticals industry, which he said is "the most organised sector" with most factories giving five bonuses and sharing profits, apart from other benefits.

The unrest then spread to the apparel sector and nearly 250 garment factories are set to be closed down again because of the unrest, he said.

Chowdhury also said there is no chance to judge any factory owners through a political lens. "We have to save the industries for the greater interest of the country."

AK Azad, chairman and managing director of Ha-Meem Group, said many small and medium enterprises are in "big trouble" for survival because of the unrest, and many factories would not be able to pay salaries timely as they could not continue production.

BGMEA President Khandoker Rafiqul Islam said 260 factories were closed down as they could not implement the new wage structure that came into effect in December last year. He also said the unrest has been continuing even after meeting the workers' demands.

Dozens of factories were shut when the unrest in Ashulia began after the fall of the Awami League government through a mass uprising on August 5.

The BGMEA accepted some of the demands in early September, easing the situation. However, the number of closed units crossed 250 at one point as unrest returned.

Most factories reopened again last week after the owners had threatened to shut down their production units for an indefinite period under the 'no work, no pay' clause of the labour law.