In protest of unpaid pay and a portion of their Eid-ul-Fitr bonus, more than 2,000 employees of Modiste CEPZ Ltd, a JMS Group subsidiary situated in the Chittagong Export Processing Zone (CEPZ), blocked the Chittagong Airport Road on Monday afternoon. On the busy road, the demonstration significantly disrupted traffic.
The protest began inside the factory premises around 8 am, where workers staged a sit-in to express their grievances. At around 2:00 pm, as tensions increased, the workers marched to the CEPZ Intersection, where they blocked the main route and stopped traffic. Long tailbacks and a disturbance in local traffic flow resulted from the blockade.
This protest followed a work abstention by the employees on Sunday, from 11 am to 5:30 pm, during which production inside the factory was halted. As of the time of reporting, no payments had been made, despite plant management’s promises to the Industrial Police, Bangladesh Export Processing Zone Authority (Bepza), and worker representatives that unpaid salaries and a portion of the Eid bonus will be paid on Monday.
The Chattogram Metropolitan Police (CMP) Port Zone assistant commissioner, Mahmudul Hasan, said, “The employer repeatedly missed their obligations to pay overdue wages and a portion of the Eid bonus. They promised to pay the dues today. As they failed again, the workers took to the streets and blocked the road.” He added that authorities were attempting to persuade the workers to lift the blockade.
The workers have declared they will remain on the road until their dues are settled, emphasizing their resolve to continue protesting until their demands are met.
