State Minister for Labour Mujibul Haque on Tuesday asked garment factory owners not to terminate workers during the on-going political turmoil. The junior minister said that factory owners will have to be careful in dealing with issues like workers’ wages, increment and termination while the country is passing through a sensitive time of political unrest. He was speaking at a meeting of Crisis Management Committee comprised of representatives of the government, readymade garment factory owners, industrial police, rapid action battalion and trade unions. Mujibul asked the owners to implement 5 per cent increment for the workers as per provision of the wage board and said owners will have to be cautious to avoid any untoward incident in the sector during the present critical time. Coming down heavily on trade union federation, Mujibul said the government would review the activities of some federation and see whether the federation obtained registration through proper channel. ‘Some of the federation leaders are acting against the interest of the country and working like agents of foreigners. The government will resist any harmful activities in the name of trade union,’ the state minister said. In the meeting, factory owners urged the government and law enforcement agencies to ensure transportation of export goods and imported raw materials to keep the production in the factories normal. They informed that most of the garment factories that are members of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association and Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association have already implemented the 5 per cent increment since the announcement of the new wage structure a year ago. Labour secretary Mikail Shipar, BGMEA vice president Reaz Bin-Mahmood, former BKMEA vice president Mohammad Hatem, inspector general of the Depertment of Inspection for Factories and Establishments Syed Ahmed, among others, attended the meeting.
