Agitating workers of the Swan Garments laid a siege on Thursday to the head office of Islami Bank Bangladesh Ltd (IBBL), demanding payment of their dues and reopening of the factory. The workers first staged a demonstration in front of the Jatiya Press Club at around 10:30 am. Later they marched and took position on road in front of the bank. They stayed there and left the place at 12:30 pm. They said they have been demanding their dues (salaries and bonus) before the Eid-ul-Fitr. But the government or the owners of the factory did not take any concrete step to resolve the matter. They said the owner of the factory had an account in the IBBL. He mortgaged the garment unit to the bank. They said as the bank took the mortgage of the factory, so the IBBL could pay their dues. “If the IBBL wishes, then it could pay dues of the workers. We demanded immediate payment of dues of the workers and reopening of the industrial unit”, president of the Bangladesh Sramik Union Advocate Montu Ghosh told the journalists. He called upon the IBBL authorities to withdraw cases against workers. The bank authority filed a case on June 18 last against some unknown persons following looting of the factory godown. When contacted, an official of the IBBL told the FE that concerted efforts are now under way to resolve the issue. He said a meeting was held at the labour ministry on Thursday which was attended by representatives of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE), workers’ representatives, the government, IBBL officials and others on resolving the problem. “The Ministry of Labour, DIFE, the BGMEA, and the IBBL authorities are now working jointly to resolve the issue,” Assistant Vice- President and head of Public Relations Division of the bank Nazrul Islam told the FE. He said the owner of the Swan Garments committed suicide in April last and left the factory ownership in crisis. The garment factory (Swan) is liable to pay Tk 400 million to the bank. “We are following banking rules to realise the money,” Mr Islam said.
