Jamaat Demands Garment Minimum Wage Be Announced Quickly and Take Effect from January, Raises 12 Demands

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Secretary General Golam Parwar has called for the minimum wage in the ready-made garment industry to be announced quickly and to take effect from next January. He demanded that the wage be announced ensuring effective representation of the workers.

The Jamaat secretary general made the call on Thursday (5 November) at a press conference on the current situation in the garment industry. At the press conference, he presented 12 demands to the government on behalf of Jamaat-e-Islami.

Golam Parwar said the government formed a six-member wage board on 1 November. The board's first meeting was held yesterday, 4 November. He expressed hope that the board would make a neutral and acceptable recommendation considering the workers' real cost of living, current market prices, family size and basic needs.

He said garment workers are demonstrating for various logical demands including setting a minimum monthly wage of 30,000 taka. The workers are currently living an extremely difficult life, he said.

Golam Parwar said the prices of daily essentials, house rent, treatment, education, transport and the cost of living including electricity and gas have risen continuously. But the workers' income and standard of living have not improved as desired in comparison. Meeting one's own and one's family's basic needs on a worker's monthly income is becoming harder by the day, he said.

He said ensuring food, housing, treatment, children's education and social security has become a big challenge for the workers.

The Jamaat secretary general said a fair wage for a worker is not a favour; it is the fair right of his labour. Ignoring the standard of living of the workers on whose labour and production the industry and economy are built cannot ensure the long-term stability of the industry, he said.

He expressed deep concern over the ongoing worker unrest in the garment industry, the determination of the minimum wage, vandalism and arson in industrial establishments, factories closing one after another and the employment of lakhs of workers becoming uncertain. The current situation is not only a matter of worker-owner dispute; it is an important crisis for the country's industrial production, export trade, foreign currency earnings and national economy, he said.

At the same time, he strongly condemned acts such as vandalism and arson in industrial establishments, attacks on vehicles, looting and disrupting production activities. He emphasised finding out through an impartial investigation whether the banned Awami League, Jubo League and Sramik League, political vested groups or any other group is attempting incitement and sabotage centred on the ongoing worker unrest. But ordinary workers must not be blamed without proof, he said.

He said the real offenders must be brought under the law regardless of their political identity or social status. At the same time, the path of harassment, torture and mass arrests in the name of suppressing the workers' logical movement must be avoided.

The 12 demands include ensuring a fair and impartial investigation into the death of worker Toufik Sheikh, who was killed in Gazipur, bringing those responsible under the law with exemplary punishment, proper treatment for the injured workers and suitable compensation for the family of the deceased.

The demands also include identifying through an impartial investigation those involved in vandalism, arson, looting, sabotage and violence at factories and vehicles and bringing them under the law; stopping undue use of force, torture, harassment and intimidation of workers by law enforcement agencies; and the immediate release of innocent workers and worker leaders arrested over the ongoing labour unrest and the withdrawal of harassing and baseless cases.

Demands were also made to stop attacks, torture and harassment of ordinary workers based on political or party identity; to take adequate security measures in industrial areas to ensure the safety of workers, factories, industrial establishments and vehicles; and to immediately organise an effective dialogue with the government, the owners' side and worker representatives and other stakeholders of the sector to resolve the ongoing crisis in the garment industry.

The list of demands also includes taking initiatives to reopen the closed factories quickly and bringing workers back to their workplaces ensuring a safe and normal working environment; stopping unfair and illegal layoffs, reviewing the matter of blacklisted workers to give them the opportunity to work again, and quickly paying the workers' arrears of salary, allowances, overtime and other legal dues.

Golam Parwar also demanded that a rationing system be introduced to supply food items at fair prices to improve the standard of living of garment workers. He also demanded the expansion of health services, housing and social security programmes for the workers.

A demand was also raised for the government and the relevant authorities to take steps to ensure a healthy and safe working environment for women workers. He called on all parties concerned, including workers and owners, to play a responsible and united role to protect the country's garment industry, workers' jobs, owners' investment and the national economy.