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At least nine workers of Sea Stage BD Limited were injured by rubber bullets during clashes with police while protesting unpaid wages and blocking the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway in Sreepur, Gazipur, on Thursday.
The workers blocked the highway near MC Bazar in Mulaid village around 8:30am, demanding payment of their outstanding September salaries.
The blockade lasted about an hour, causing long tailbacks on both sides of the highway and disrupting travel for long-distance passengers and other commuters.
Clashes broke out as police attempted to remove the protesters. Police fired sound grenades to disperse them.
Workers alleged that shots were also fired at them, but police did not confirm the allegation.
The nine injured workers went to Sreepur Upazila Health Complex for treatment. Six, who were seriously injured, were referred to Shaheed Tajuddin Ahmad Medical College Hospital and Dhaka Medical College Hospital for advanced treatment. The other three received primary treatment and returned home.
Workers said the factory authorities had promised on October 13 to pay their outstanding September wages following a protest on October 10.
However, the payments were not made on the promised date. Although the authorities reportedly said the wages would be paid on Wednesday, they delayed again. The factory announced a general holiday on Thursday, prompting the workers to take to the highway.
The protesters said prolonged delays in wage payments had pushed them into financial hardship. They expressed anger over what they described as repeated assurances without payment and the use of force to disperse them.
Industrial police went to the scene and urged the workers to clear the highway, offering to discuss the outstanding wages with the factory management. When the blockade continued, clashes followed and police used sound grenades to disperse the protesters.
Gazipur Industrial Police-2 Superintendent of Police Mohammad Amjad Hossain said the workers had blocked the highway over unpaid September wages. Police asked them to withdraw and offered to facilitate talks with the factory owners, but they continued the blockade. Police then used several sound grenades to clear the road, he said.
Dr Sabikun Nahar Eti, an emergency physician at Sreepur Upazila Health Complex, confirmed that nine workers with rubber-bullet injuries had received treatment. Six were referred to other hospitals, while three received primary care.
The workers demanded immediate payment of their outstanding wages and a proper investigation into the incident.
