Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN)- Bangladesh’s apparel factory owners have issued an ultimatum to the government to review in 15 days the minimum monthly wage of BDT 5,300 for apparel workers recommended by the wage board, or they would shut down the factories.
The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association and Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association issued the ultimatum at a press conference at its headquarters in the capital Dhaka on Tuesday.
“The country’s readymade garment (RMG) sector is not in a position to afford this amount,” Atiqul Islam, president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), said while speaking at the joint press conference.
The BGMEA chief also said the recommendation of BDT 5,300 as minimum wage for the entry-level workers is a suicidal thinking for the sector.
The leaders of two platforms – the BGMEA and the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) –have decided to submit an application to the wage board on Wednesday for reviewing the recommendation on minimum wage for RMG workers.
On Tuesday, a government-appointed wage board recommended BDT 5,300 as minimum monthly wage for RMG workers, up from existing level of BDT 3,000 (US$38.58) amid disagreement from the apparel manufacturers.
If the proposed wage is implemented, at first, the small and medium categories factory will shut resulting unemployment of a large number of workers, the BGMEA chief explained.
“We don’t want to shut our factories but we have no other choice,” AKM Salim Osman, president of the BKMEA, said, adding that the industry is unable to bear the proposed minimum wage.
He has sought the prime minister’s intervention for a realistic and payable minimum wage for RMG workers.
BBN/SSR/AD-06Nov13-10:22 am (BST)
