AFP Garment factory workers protest in Bangladesh
NOS Nieuws•vandaag, 17:20
Food manufacturers have closed 150 factories in Bangladesh for an “indefinite period”, local police said. They do this as a precaution, after looting and destruction occurred during protests by textile workers.
Thousands of factory workers have been protesting for a higher minimum wage for weeks. Three people were killed and dozens were injured during the protests. More than seventy factories were looted or damaged.
On Thursday, a protest by 15,000 people led to a confrontation with the police, after which the crowd looted several factories. These are the most violent protests since the Rana Plaza disaster of 2013.
Massive indictment
Police told the AFP news agency that the shut down factories are in the major industrial cities of Ashulia and Gazipur, north of the capital Dhaka. Factory owners fear even more destruction and therefore close their factories. The labor law in Bangladesh allows a factory to be closed on the grounds of “illegal strikes”.
AFP
Workers protest against low wages in garment factories
EPA
Garment factory workers are demanding higher wages
Police have filed charges against 11,000 factory workers over the violent protests. Police in Bangladesh are increasingly filing mass charges against groups of people after major protests and political violence. Critics say it is a way to tackle people with differing opinions.
Monthly wage of 70 euros
The garment factories are an important pillar in the Bengali economy. Its approximately 3,500 factories account for about 85 percent of the country’s annual exports. Four million people work in the sector, the vast majority of whom are women.
Until recently, workers in garment factories in Bangladesh had a monthly salary of the equivalent of 70 euros. On Tuesday, the organization representing factory owners offered an increase to around 106 euros. Factory workers rejected that offer and are demanding a minimum wage of about 195 euros to pay for increased costs of food, rent and healthcare.
Bangladesh has been dealing with inflation for some time now. Many factory workers have to work overtime to make ends meet.
Letter to Prime Minister
Many major brands have clothing made in Bangladesh, including H&M, Levi’s, Zara and Primark. Eighteen brands sent a joint letter to the Prime Minister of Bangladesh last month, calling for peaceful negotiations on a minimum wage that would allow textile workers to “earn their livelihood”.
The minimum wage is a matter for the government in Bangladesh, but clothing brands indirectly influence salaries in factories through the rates they are willing to pay for the production of clothing. Spokespeople for both Primark and H&M have announced in recent days that there are no problems with the supply of clothing.
2023-11-11 16:20:56
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