Bangladesh government has directed the readymade garment factory owners to release wages and festival bonus to workers by August 24. The Labour Ministry has issued this notification as the country gears up to celebrate Eid- ul- Azha, the largest festival of Muslims, on September 1.
The decision was taken at a core committee meeting on crisis management at Bangladesh’a Ministry of Labour and Employment office in Dhaka on Wednesday. Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), the apex trade body of the country, also attended the meeting. The meeting was chaired by Mujibul Haque Chunnu, State Minister of Labour and Employment.
According to the press release issued, the factory owners have also agreed to pay the festival bonus on or before August 24 along with other payments, including wages for the month of August, before the Eid holidays start.
“Factory owners assured us that the workers will be paid their dues before Eid-ul-Azha. But owners facing financial crisis will need to take steps accordingly after reaching an understanding with their workers,” Chunnu told reporters after the meeting.
Garment workers’ representatives at the Minimum Wage Board has, however, expressed fear that at least 45 factories, mostly small- and medium-sized, would not be able to pay the festival bonus and wages to the workers before the Eid-ul-Azha. The names of such factories will be forwarded to the Labour Ministry soon, they said.
According to the workers’ representatives, about 1,500 factories would pay their workers within the deadline, while some 1,000 factories will be able to pay it 2-3 days prior to Eid-ul-Azha.
Currently, about 4.4 million workers are recruited in the 4,000 apparel factories across the country, most of whom are migrants from remote rural areas, usually, head to their villages to celebrate Eid with their near and dear ones every year.
