Minimum salary for RMG workers

On the other hand, we find that the rationale so far produced by the owners against fixing the minimum wage at Tk 3000 is not only inadequate but also extremely unclear. One of the reasons cited by the owners that 75 percent of the factories will have to be closed down should the minimum wage be fixed at Tk.3000, appears to be an excuse because the point remains unelaborated. To us it appears that there is a missing link, and that too a weak one, in the logic being produced by the owners and their representatives. It is common knowledge that many of the factories that are today categorised as sick are the products of the negligence and mismanagement by the owners.

On the contrary, it is much to the credit of workers that they continued to work under debilitating conditions for over a decade. For long the owners have reaped extraordinary profits by grossly neglecting the very basic rights of their workers.

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It is also not understandable as to why the owners are dragging their feet in implementing the other conditions as already agreed upon and provided for in the tripartite agreement signed between the BGMA, leaders of the garment workers and the administration nearly three months ago following the major outbreak of agitation staged by the workers. This clearly demonstrates a lack of will and commitment on the part of the owners in particular to resolve this crisis any time soon.

We strongly feel that the owners should sit down with the relevant government authorities and the leaders of the workers once again and once for all resolve this frightfully contentious issue of national interest. It will not be out of place to mention that alongside the country as a whole there is much at stake here for the owners too and hence failure to resolve this crisis in the RMG sector is not an option.