Online Desk: Salary of the readymade garment workers for the month of March will be paid by Monday (April 10) next while the bonus will be given before Eid holidays. State Minister for Labour and Employment Begum Monnujan Sufian announced it following a tripartite meeting of workers, owners and government at the Department of Labour at Shantinagar in the capital on Wednesday (April 5, 2023).

At the meeting, the state minister asked the owners to give festival allowance ahead of Eid holidays. She requested the factory owners to consult with workers over the payment for April’s first 15 days and additional holidays in line with government holidays. Labour and Employment Secretary Md. Ehsane Elahi, representatives of the owners and workers of both sectors of readymade garments,
and senior officials of the ministry were present at the meeting.

Though the representatives of workers demanded to fix the dates for payment of salaries and bonuses at the meeting, it could not be done due to the strong opposition from the representatives of owners. The State Minister for Labour and Employment said the issue of specific dates for payment of salary and bonus was left for the owners to decide. But the factories which would play dally-dillying to pay the salary of workers in time, the government will take steps against those.

The meeting sources said the workers demanded payment of the March salary by April 10, Eid bonus by April 17 or 25th of Ramadan and half of the salary of the month of April during the Eid holidays. Besides, they called for taking action against those factories which push the workers to the uncertainty on every Eid instead of paying their salary and bonus.

On behalf of the industrial police, it was told at the meeting that it often become impossible to tackle the situation if the workers are not given their salary and bonus before Eid. “So, we hope that the owners must pay salary and bonus in time so that workers can enjoy Eid festival properly,” they said.