ASHULIA: Thousands of striking Bangladeshi garment workers clashed with police on Monday, demanding a monthly minimum wage more than double their current pay, as protests spread across industrial hubs.
The South Asian nation of 170 million people is the world’s second-biggest garment exporter behind China, producing clothes for major international brands. Hundreds of workers in Gazipur, north of the capital Dhaka, blocked the Dhaka-Tangail highway, with some damaging cars including torching a police vehicle. Large groups took to the streets in the Mirpur district, where police dispersed demonstrators with tear gas, reporters saw.
Industry representatives said workers from at least 670 factories walked out on Monday. At least 58 police officers have been injured since protests erupted on Saturday, the force said, giving no figure for protesters hurt in clashes.
Police fired stun grenades and tear gas canisters to disperse crowds in Ashulia, a Dhaka suburb and the site of some of the country’s largest factories. Strikes also spread to Narayanganj, another major manufacturing hub. At least 57 people have been arrested.
The protests have continued despite the government’s announcement that it would establish a board to review the minimum wage in the vital garment industry, which employs millions of people and generates the bulk of Bangladesh’s export earnings.
Labour leaders say workers’ grievances extend beyond the formation of the board, citing inflation at eight percent and rising household expenses. The protesters demand a 30,000-taka monthly wage ($241), more than double their current pay.
Workers currently earn about 13,000 taka a month, according to Kalpona Akter of the Bangladesh Centre for Workers Solidarity. ‘Food prices, cooking gas and electricity bills have all gone up the government must either bring down the prices of essential commodities or raise our wages,’ said Mamun, 28, a factory worker.-AFP