"We've decided to extend the deadline due to progress in implementation," Labour and Employment Adviser Mohammad Anwarul Iqbal told reporters, after a meeting on the progress of implementation of minimum wages for RMG industry.

He threatened legal measures if the factories failed to implement the minimum wages for their workers by the new deadline. The earlier deadline expired on June 30.

He said some 490 factories have failed to meet the June 30 deadline. BGMEA, however, put the figure at 308.

The adviser chaired the meeting with apparel industry leaders, who were led by BGMEA President Anwarul Alam Chowdhury, at the local government ministry conference room.

Earlier, the government had set minimum wages at Tk 1662.50 and the deadline for implementation of the wages through a tripartite negotiation among the government, workers' leaders and employers.