Owners Consider Closing 210 Garment Factories in Ashulia and Savar Indefinitely, Final Decision on Saturday

Owners are considering keeping 210 garment factories in the labour-unrest-prone areas of Ashulia and Savar closed indefinitely, as production activities have been disrupted by worker unrest. A preliminary decision on the matter was taken at an emergency meeting last Wednesday (11 November).

A final decision may come at a meeting with all members on Saturday (14 November). The owners' move has created fresh instability in the country's readymade garment industry and uncertainty in export activities.

According to industry owners' sources, production had to be stopped at 143 garment factories in the Ashulia, Jamgara and Hemayetpur areas last Wednesday. Workers are entering the factories but not taking part in work. Some are leaving the factories after giving attendance. Vandalism has also occurred at several factories. In this situation, production has been stopped for 11 consecutive days at some factories.

Shovon Islam, managing director of Sparrow Group, said that according to the advice of the leaders present at the meeting, a decision has been taken to keep 210 garment factories in unrest-prone areas including Ashulia closed indefinitely. The final decision will be announced at Saturday's meeting with all members.

Mohammad Rashed, vice-president of BKMEA, said that on one side workers are not working in the factories, and on the other side vandalism is happening in some places. At the same time, discussions on wages are also going on. In this situation, running the factories has become difficult. Production has not been possible for 11 consecutive days at some factories. Owners are also worried about how workers' wages will be paid in such a situation.

People connected with the industry say there are large garment factories in various areas of Ashulia and Savar such as Ha-Meem, New Age, Ananta Garments, Sterling, Envoy, Islam and Decor. According to BGMEA sources, about 300,000 workers work in the factories of these areas. As a result, if 210 factories are closed, the employment and income of a huge number of workers could face uncertainty.

Meanwhile, owners of several factories have already given factory closure notices under Section 13(1) of the Bangladesh Labour Act. Under this section, in the case of an illegal strike, an employer can keep the establishment partially or fully closed. However, whether workers receive wages during such a closure depends on the conditions and limitations set in the law.

Meanwhile, concerns have also been created over export purchase orders amid fears of factory closures. It may become difficult to produce and deliver products for ongoing orders on time. As other factories already have production pressure, transferring the work of closed factories there will not be easy either. In addition, because international buyers have conditions on designated factories, production processes and quality control, producing through subcontracting at alternative factories may also be difficult.

Shovon Islam said production cannot simply be done through subcontracting at another factory at will. For this reason, it may be necessary to send goods by air at extra cost. There is even a fear that purchase orders may be cancelled if products cannot be delivered on time.

Earlier, BGMEA had taken an initiative to close garment factories because of labour unrest. However, at the government's request, the owners then kept the factories running. In the meantime, a meeting of the new wage board announced that the workers' new wages would take effect from December. After that, although workers returned to work in industrial areas such as Gazipur, Mirpur in the capital and Narayanganj, unrest has continued in several areas of Ashulia and Savar.

According to industry owners, if production remains stopped, not only factory owners will be harmed — workers' income, foreign buyers' confidence and the country's export earnings will also be at risk. Therefore, it is urgent to resolve the labour unrest quickly and bring normal production back to the factories.