Garment workers from Ssain Apparels Limited staged a protest on Monday, blocking the Kathgora-Bishmail regional road at Amtola intersection to demand the immediate reopening of their factory and the payment of outstanding wages.
The demonstration began around 9:30 am and was led by approximately 1,800 workers who expressed frustration over unpaid dues and the indefinite closure of the factory, which has been shut since February. The workers also demanded full settlement of their dues in accordance with labor laws if the factory remains closed.
The protest was temporarily halted around 11:30 am following intervention from officials of the Industrial Police. According to Industrial Police-1 Superintendent of Police Muhammad Mominul Islam Bhuiyan, “We had to sell factory assets before Eid with a lot of difficulty in order to arrange payments for the workers. The owner is not in the country, which makes it impossible to resolve the factory’s ongoing layoffs. Since they have not been paid, the employees are refusing to recognise the layoff status.”
Workers claim that despite the factory’s repeated layoff announcements since February and its recent announcement of an extended closure, they have not yet received their partial February income or their March and April payouts. Additionally, they stated that no reopening plans had been disclosed by the industrial authorities.
Employees remembered receiving Eid bonuses and 20 days of pay for February right before Eid, with help from the army and Industrial Police. The plant owners have not made any more payments since.
The protest concluded after negotiations with law enforcement officials, but workers continue to demand their rightful wages and clarity on the factory’s reopening plans.
