Labour leaders in Gazipur have urged garment workers to return to their workplaces from Wednesday, while calling for legal action against outsiders they accused of infiltrating peaceful wage protests and engaging in vandalism, arson and attacks on police.
The appeal came at a press conference organised by the Sramik Mukti Sangram Parishad, Gazipur, a platform comprising 35 labour organisations, at the Gazipur Press Club on Tuesday.
The leaders welcomed the government’s decision to form a wage board for the garment sector, describing it as a victory for workers. They urged workers to place their confidence in the board and resume production from Wednesday.
The press conference was held against the backdrop of four days of labour unrest, with the organisers outlining their proposals for resolving the dispute and maintaining industrial peace and discipline.
In a written statement, the organisation’s president, Tamiz Uddin Tanu, said keeping factories operational is essential to protecting the national economy and workers’ livelihoods.
He urged workers to remain vigilant against attempts by outsiders and vested groups to destabilise the garment sector.
“Return to your workplaces and resume normal production activities,” he said, addressing workers.
Mohammad Shafiul Alam, joint convener of the Bangladesh Garments and Industrial Workers Federation, called on workers to trust the wage board formed by the government, saying a fair solution could be reached through dialogue.
He welcomed the government’s initiative and urged it to ensure an objective and fair wage structure that takes workers’ living costs into consideration.
Shafiul also called on the authorities to refrain from arresting workers, filing cases against them or subjecting them to repression. He stressed the need to ensure humane treatment of workers.
Other labour leaders present included Mohammad Abdul Aziz, central general secretary of the Garment Industry Workers Alliance; Mizanur Rahman Sikder, president of the Gazipur district committee of the Bangladesh Garments and Industrial Workers Okiya Council; Mohammad Khokon Mia, general secretary of the Gazipur metropolitan committee of the Bangladesh Garments and Textile Workers Federation; and Mohammad Abul Hossain Jewel, president of the Gazipur district committee of the Bangla Garment Workers Federation.
Rokeya Parvin, central women’s affairs secretary of the National Federation of Technical and Industrial Workers; Mohammad Azizul Islam, vice-president of the Gazipur district committee of the Garment Workers Front; Mohammad Amzad Hossain, vice-president of the central committee of the Bangladesh Garment Workers Federation; Mohammad Monirul Islam, vice-president of the Bangladesh Open Garment Workers Union Federation; and Mohammad Anwar Hossain, joint general secretary of the Gazipur district committee of the National Garment Workers Federation, were also present.
The leaders claimed that workers were not involved in the vandalism reported at several factories in their name. They blamed political outsiders for the attacks on police, factory vandalism and arson, and demanded legal action against those responsible.
Meanwhile, attempts to create disorder were reported at Togora Bypass intersection, Naojor and several other locations in Gazipur on Tuesday. The attempts were thwarted following resistance from police and BNP activists, according to the report.
Gazipur-2 lawmaker M Manjuril Karim Rony, Gazipur-1 lawmaker Mujibur Rahman and Gazipur City Corporation Administrator Shawkat Hossain Sarker were also present on the streets with a large number of party activists to prevent commuters from being harassed and maintain public order.
Speaking to journalists, they said the workers’ demands were legitimate and that the government was working sincerely to address them.
They alleged that an absconding vested group, whose members had fled the country, was instigating workers to create unrest and put the government in a difficult position.
