DHAKA: Hundreds of ready-made garment (RMG) workers staged a protest on Tuesday morning by blocking the Dhaka–Mymensingh Highway in Gazipur district, demanding the reopening of shuttered factories and immediate payment of their pending wages.
Around 200 employees of Rowa Fashions Limited held the protest near the flyover adjacent to Bhogra Bypass in Bason Police Station, causing severe traffic congestion and bringing the highway to a standstill, local media reported.
Confirming the blockade, Wahiduzzaman Raju, Additional Superintendent of Gazipur Industrial Police, said that measures were taken to restore order.
“We are trying to control the situation… details will be announced later, ” said the police official speaking to Bangladesh’s leading newspaper, The Daily Star.
According to the police, the protest also led to the closure of several other factories in the Chowdhurybari area of Dhaka.
The protesters said that they were demanding the payment of their July wages and opposing the factory relocation.
The factory owner served a notice on Monday, citing Section 13(1) of the labour law to shut the factory due to unrest and financial setbacks.
“I am selling land to pay the dues. Once the sale is complete, I will clear the payments. I need a few days, ” said Enayet Karim, the owner of the factory.
Meanwhile, on Monday evening, several hundred workers from two garment factories held officials hostage inside the Srom Bhaban in Dhaka’s Bijoynagar area, demanding unpaid salaries and dues.