RMG owners urge workers to return to work

Readymade garment (RMG) industry owners have urged workers to return to their workplaces and suspend ongoing protests until the newly formed wage board announces its final decision on minimum wages.

The owners stressed the need to maintain uninterrupted factory operations, saying wage increases and other benefits should be resolved through the institutional process, taking into account both workers’ interests and the financial capacity of the industry.

Former Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) president and current FBCCI administrator Md Fazlul Hoque urged workers to remain patient and have confidence in the wage board.

He said wage increases should be settled through the prescribed process rather than street demonstrations, stressing that any revised pay structure must be sustainable for the industry.

Meanwhile, BKMEA Executive President Fazlee Shamim Ehsan called for identifying the actual reasons behind the ongoing unrest through discussions and coordination among relevant stakeholders.

The government has formed a six-member wage board comprising representatives of workers, employers and the government to determine a revised minimum wage.

The appeal comes amid continued protests across major industrial areas, including Ashulia, Gazipur, Savar, Mirpur and Narayanganj, over workers’ demand for a minimum monthly wage of Tk 30,000.