50 factories shut
At least two workers were killed and 55 others injured as they clashed with law enforcers in Gazipur and Savar, on the outskirts of the capital, on Monday, demanding Tk 8,300 as minimum wage.
The deaths were reported in Gazipur.
In Gazipur, a clash between garment workers and police at Kashimpur in the city left two people dead and 25 others injured.
The deceased were identified as Badsha Miah and Nilufar Akhter Ruma, workers of JAS Composite Factory in Gazipur.
Witnesses said workers of several garments took to the streets demanding that their minimum salary be fixed at Tk 8,300 and vandalised a number of vehicles at noon.
As police tried to disperse them, they threw brickbats at the law enforcers, triggering a clash that left 27 people, including Badsha and Ruma, injured.
The duo succumbed to their injuries on the way to hospital.
Shawkat Hossain, a physician at Enam Medical College Hospital in Savar, said Badsha was brought dead to the hospital.
The body of the female worker who hailed from Nilphamari district was handed over to her husband.
Following the workers’ violent demonstration, about 50 RMG factories were closed in Konabari and Kashimpur areas.
Additional police super Sanjit Kumer Roy said three platoons of BGB have been deployed in the area.
In Savar, at least 30 garment workers were injured in a clash with policemen at Jamgora and Hemayetpur in the morning.
The authorities suspended production at 20 garment factories, including Rose Dresses Limited owned by BGMEA President Atikul Islam, after labour unrest erupted in the area.
Witnesses said 3,000-4,000 workers from 20 garment units, including Rose Dresses, took to the streets at about 9:00 am and staged demonstrations demanding their minimum wage be fixed at Tk8,300, instead of Tk5,300 finalised recently, though with the factory owners’ consent at last, by the government-appointed wage board.
The demonstrators attempted to put up barricade on the Abdullahpur-Baipail road by placing logs. They also vandalised 12 vehicles in the area.
Police fired several rounds of rubber bullet and lobbed teargas shells to disperse the workers, triggering a clash that left 30 of the demonstrators injured.
Of the injured, 3/4 people were admitted to a local hospital. Later, the authorities closed 20 factories for the day.
Additional police were deployed in the area to quell the unrest.
Source: UNB Connect
