Labour and Employment Secretary Md Abdur Rahman Tarafder said on Saturday that a wage board would be formed soon to determine new wages for workers in the garment sector.
He said the process of nominating representatives of both workers and employers to the wage board was under way.
Expressing hope that a gazette notification could be published this month, he said the ministry would issue the notification once nominations were received from the respective parties, after which the board would begin its work.
The labour secretary made the remarks while speaking to the state-run news agency BSS.
He explained that the wage board would comprise a chairman, an independent member, a workers’ representative and an employers’ representative.
Additionally, the board would include two representatives from the relevant industrial sector, one representing workers and the other employers. In the case of the ready-made garment (RMG) industry, representatives from that sector would serve on the board.
The labour secretary said the board would consider Bangladesh’s overall economic situation, wage rates in neighbouring countries and the realities on the ground in different factories when determining wages for RMG workers.
He added that the board would review these factors before deciding on wage levels, rather than the ministry setting wages unilaterally through administrative action.
Abdur Rahman Tarafder further said the Department of Labour had already been instructed to initiate the formation of the wage board.
The department had subsequently asked both workers and employers to nominate their respective representatives. Once the nominations were received, the ministry would issue the official gazette notification.
Regarding the ongoing labour unrest, he said the government maintained a positive stance towards workers’ demands and was engaged in regular dialogue with them. Labour leaders had also been kept informed of these developments.
The secretary added that the government had undertaken various initiatives to safeguard workers’ rights.
Tripartite discussions involving representatives of workers, employers and the government were under way on the labour rules, with several meetings already held on the matter.
The labour secretary said a meeting of the National Tripartite Consultative Council (TCC) would be held on 27 October, chaired by the minister of labour and employment.
The meeting would include detailed discussions on the current labour situation, including the formation of a wage board and the drafting of labour rules, with representatives of workers, employers and the relevant ministries participating.
He said that, alongside addressing workers’ demands, the government remained vigilant to ensure that no external vested interest groups could incite unrest in connection with the ongoing protests.
