RMG factories not opening on April 26

On Wednesday, in a letter to the Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation chairman, the garment sector's apex trade body sought an adequate number of buses for transportation of RMG workers as the factories were to reopen on April 26.

It added that most of the workers were now in their village homes.

They will start coming to their workplaces in the industry dense areas like Gazipur, Savar, Ashulia and some parts of the capital mostly from districts such as Mymensingh, Sirajganj, Pabna, Manikganj, Rangpur, and Bogura from April 20. So, the workers will need buses, the letter read.

However, BGMEA President Rubana Huq yesterday said the RMG factories would not be reopened as per the previous plan.

"It is being observed that there are some misleading information circulating in social media regarding opening of the BGMEA factories," she told The Daily Star in a WhatsApp message.

"The position of BGMEA is very clear on this. We need to be safe first before we operate. If the situation improves, Inshallah, we will when the time is right. But for now, the first and only priority is the health and safety of our workers.

"The BGMEA was planning to open factories subject to Covid-19 situation and after yesterday's official declaration, the BGMEA will wait and observe the situation and plan accordingly," Rubana said.

Earlier, BGMEA and Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) in a joint statement urged the member factories to shut down the factories to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

However, the BGMEA and the BKMEA in the statement said if any factory wanted to stay open for paying salaries to its workers for the month of March, they must seek permission from the associations and industrial police.

On the other hand, the government's Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) in a statement on Tuesday said the factories can be kept open if they have work orders from the international retailers and brands, and the factories which are engaged in production of Personal Protective Equipment, masks and goods related to coronavirus prevention.

The DIFE also said the government would take legal actions like filing cases and suspend the renewal of factory licences if any factory owners failed to pay the workers by April 16.

It will send a list of factories which failed to pay the workers within the deadline to the labour and employment ministry on April 20.

Meanwhile, garment workers in Gazipur's Sreepur yesterday took to the streets, demanding their last month's salaries.

The workers of MHC Apparels Ltd blocked the Dhaka-Sreepur highway in the morning. Around its 3,000 workers withdrew the blockade following assurances of payment around noon.

KDM Global Apparels Ltd workers also demonstrated for the same demand, reports our Gazipur correspondent.