Bangladesh forms garment wage board amid worker protests

Bangladesh formed a new wage board on Sunday, November 1, to review the minimum wage for garment workers, as thousands of workers continued protests around Dhaka.

The demonstrations have disrupted key industrial hubs around the capital. Clashes continued in industrial areas on Sunday, with police firing tear gas and sound grenades.

The wage board includes representatives of the government, workers and factory owners. Labour minister Ariful Haque Choudhury announced the board at a news conference in Dhaka and urged workers to return to factories.

Choudhury said officials had discussed the issue with labour leaders and factory owners for three days. He also said a group seeking to destabilise the government and cause public suffering had been exploiting workers.

Labour leaders said the creation of the board did not resolve wider grievances over inflation and rising household expenses. Kalpona Akhter of the Bangladesh Center for Workers Solidarity said workers currently earn about 13,000 taka, or $106, a month and are demanding a little more than 30,000 taka.

Bangladesh's garment sector employs millions of workers and generates the bulk of the country's foreign earnings. Thousands of factories produce clothing including T-shirts, jeans and sweaters for major retailers in Europe and the United States.