GM Quader voices solidarity with garment workers' Tk 30,000 wage movement, proposes government subsidy

Jatiya Party chairman Golam Mohammad (GM) Quader has described the garment workers' movement for a fair wage as justified, strongly condemned the repression of the protesters, and expressed full support and solidarity with the movement. He expressed the solidarity in a statement on Wednesday (4 November).

GM Quader said the lion's share of the country's export earnings comes from the garment sector. Because of high inflation and rising market prices, meeting the cost of daily essentials, house rent, electricity bills, medical expenses and cooking fuel has become not just difficult but virtually impossible for workers under the current pay structure, he said.

He said that in this reality, hundreds of thousands of garment workers cannot meet their minimum cost of living. As a result, the workers are continuing their movement demanding that their wage be set at Tk 30,000.

The Jatiya Party chairman said that instead of being sympathetic to the workers' just demands, the government is carrying out repression by physically torturing and arresting workers in order to stop the movement.

Citing media reports, GM Quader said a garment worker named Toufik, who was injured at the hands of law enforcement in Gazipur, died while undergoing treatment. He condemned the incident, expressed sympathy to the bereaved family and demanded just compensation for them.

He also expressed concern and criticism that the government is using excessive force to suppress the workers' movement.

At the same time, GM Quader highlighted the owners' crisis. He said that because of large increases in electricity and gas prices and the lack of uninterrupted electricity and gas supply, production at full capacity is not possible in factories. Owners are in distress because of problems in the banking sector, rising raw material prices and supply shortages, and various mismanagement at the ports, and their production costs are rising steadily.

He said that in this context, it may be extremely difficult for owners to survive in the world market while bearing the burden of workers' higher wages. Because of the war in the Middle East, the world economy is already in a downturn and the consumer goods market is shrinking.

Saying that the demands of both the workers and the owners are fair, the party chairman said it is the government's responsibility to reach a just solution.

As a solution, he proposed a government subsidy. GM Quader said the government will have to arrange subsidies to implement a just wage for the workers. With proper calculation, cash assistance or, through a rationing system according to need, daily essentials including rice, lentils, flour, edible oil, sugar, salt and LPG as cooking fuel could be supplied at subsidised prices to workers through the owners or directly, he said.