In spite of a government directive given in December 2023 for increasing minimum wages in the readymade garment (RMG) sector, nearly one third of factories have failed to implement a revised pay scale, according to a new study.
A state-run annual increment and wage review committee yesterday recommended that the government raise the minimum wage of garment workers by 9 percent.
Following the political changeover on August 5, the country’s main export-earnings sector, the garments industry, witnessed a large-scale and drawn-out spell of labour unrest in industrial belts such as Savar, Gazipur, Ashulia, Zirabo and Zirani.
The decision on whether to formulate another minimum wage for garment workers after making adjustments in line with inflation will be made by April next year.
Before the minimum wage was raised to Tk 12,500 in December, thousands of workers took to the streets to press home their demand for a minimum salary between Tk 23,000 and Tk 25,000.
For a decade, the nimble fingers of Bangladeshi garment worker Naim Pramanik sewed shirts and trousers for top Western brands, to be worn by the wealthy across the world.
Any trade sanction on Bangladesh from the West would significantly impact the economy, said the noted economist Wahiduddin Mahmud yesterday.
The government and business leaders have played down the significance of the diplomatic note from the Bangladesh embassy in Washington DC to the commerce ministry about possible measures like trade penalties and visa restrictions over labour issues.
Bangladesh embassy in Washington sends letter to commerce ministry
RMG workers’ platforms rejected new wage structure
The meeting of the wage board began at its office in Dhaka today to finalise the minimum salary for garment workers in Bangladesh.
