A hunger strike by more than a hundred garment workers in Narayanganj is said to have taken place on Monday in protest of their three months’ unpaid salary. The Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) office in the Chashara neighbourhood was the site of a protest from midday to two PM. Protesters demanded the implementation of an eighteen-point agreement, which included resolving unpaid salaries.
Employees stated that numerous factories, such as Nemcon Design and Abanti Colour Tex, have not paid them for the past three months, starting in July.
The president of the Bangladesh Textile Garments Workers’ Federation, Mahbubur Rahman Ismail, said that factory owners have not yet responded to written complaints that they have filed with the deputy commissioner over unpaid salaries. He disclosed that instead of addressing the salary concerns, the workers have been threatened, which has put many families in dire financial straits.
Ismail blamed the BKMEA leadership for the current situation and threatened more protests, including a sit-in at the deputy commissioner’s office, if workers’ dues are not paid right now.
BKMEA President Mohammad Hatem responded by dismissing the workers’ claims as baseless. He clarified that earlier protests, flooding, and banks’ lack of cooperation all contributed to the enterprises’ inability to resume work, which in turn affected their capacity to pay wages. Hatem promised that the delayed salaries will be paid out within the month, at least for two months.