The Department of Inspection of Factories and Establishments (DIFE) in Bangladesh called upon factory owners on Sunday to ensure that garment workers are not retrenched, keeping with the agreement reached in the tripartite meeting which decided to not to lay-off workers.
The Inspector General of DIFE Shib Nath Roy, who wrote a letter in this direction to the concerned trade bodies – the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporter Association (BKMEA), the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and the Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA) – took the step following requests from various trade unions in the country to stop retrenchment of garment workers, as per media reports.
Considering the existing scenario and to prevent any labour unrest in industrial areas, we are urging you initiate necessary steps to stop workers’ lay-off as per the tripartite agreement, maintained the DIFE.
As per latest DIFE data, the tripartite agreement on workers’ retrenchment notwithstanding, around 17,579 workers have reportedly been laid off by 67 readymade garments and textile units since the Eid-ul-Fitr.
