Tuba workers’ demo at BGMEA office
Several hundred Tuba group workers today staged a demonstration in front of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) headquarters in Dhaka demanding payment of their outstanding salaries and festival bonuses.
The agitating workers gathered in front of the BGMEA Bhaban in the city’s Karwan Bazar around 1:00pm under the banner of Tuba Group Sramik Songram Committee.
The workers have been demanding their outstanding salaries for the months of August and September, and festival bonuses for the last Eid-ul-Fitr and upcoming Eid-ul-Azha.
“We will not announce any hunger strikes this time. We have already observed hunger strikes before Eid-ul-Fitr and realised three months’ arrears and overtime allowance,” said Musherfa Mishu, convener of Tuba Group Sramik Sangram Committee, a platform of the Tuba Group workers.
Acting president of BGMEA, Shahidullah Azim, told The Daily Star that the workers also observed a sit-in programme in front of his Banani residence for an hour from 11:00am to 12:00pm.
Asked, Azim said the workers laid siege to his Banani residence, but no major incident took place as the workers left the place after one hour of sit-in.
“We from the BGMEA have collected fund for the payment to the workers earlier when Delwar was in jail. But, now Delwar is freed from the jail and he will have to deal with the matter,” Azim said. “So, we from the BGMEA will not take any new initiative to settle the matter,” he said.
The workers’ platform also called for a rally in front of the national press club in Dhaka on October 15 for realising their demands, Mishu told The Daily Star by phone.
The workers will also bring out procession October 19 demanding the death penalty to Delwar Hossain in front of the court where, in the same day, Delwar will go to attend a court hearing.
Mishu also said Tuba Group owner Delwar Hossain and BGMEA even did not follow the orders of Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan. During the crisis of the group in the month of July Khan told the workers that the group will also pay the arrears of two months and festival bonuses.
“But nobody is paying the workers now and we are again demonstrating for the payment. Anyway we will continue our agitation programme until our demands are met,” Mishu said.
Earlier, both the BGMEA and Delwar Hossain paid 1,600 Tuba Group workers for three months’ (May June and July) salaries and one months’ overtime in August.
The workers have been demonstrating for the arrears for two months and festival bonuses although five units of the group remained inoperative since May of this year due to shortage of work orders and shortage of working capital.
Five units of Tuba Group were facing the order crisis after the devastating fire incident at the Tazreen Fashions, the sister concern of the Tuba Group November 24, 2012. A total of 112 workers died in the fire incident at the Tazreen Fashions fire incident at Ashulia in Dhaka.
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