Give wage board time, return to work

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With labour unrest brewing again in major industrial zones, union leaders in the textile and garment sector yesterday urged agitating workers to return to their workstations while…

With labour unrest brewing again in major industrial zones, union leaders in the textile and garment sector yesterday urged agitating workers to return to their workstations while the minimum wage board works to fix their monthly pay scale.

At a joint press conference, leaders of five alliances of different federations of unions urged the garment workers to shun street agitations.

IndustriAll Bangladesh Council President Mir Abul Kalam Azad also urged factory owners to resume production and not shut their units under Section 13(1) of the Bangladesh Labour Act, which stipulates ‘no work, no pay’.

“Shutting the factories is no solution; rather, this will increase uncertainty and unrest among workers,” he said, calling on workers to be patient and act professionally in their workplaces.

He also urged the workers not to engage in any activities or instigation that may affect the functions of the wage board.

In the written speech on behalf of the alliances, he urged the government to not harass or arrest any more workers for participating in the demonstrations as well as to release those detained earlier.

Hiking the wages is not the solution as the prices of essential commodities and house rent, which take up the major portion of workers’ income, have gone up, he said, while calling upon the government to enforce rent control.

“We want stability and the garment sector to thrive alongside workers’ rights,” said Ahsan Habib Bulbul, joint coordinator of Sramik Karmachari Oikya Parishad, while calling for resumption of production in factories.

He also demanded a good grievance management in the factories so that the workers need not to go for unrest.

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