The state minister once again urged the owners to ensure payment of salary, bonus and other allowances to the workers by July 26 State minister for labour and employment ministry Mujibul Haque Chunnu has sought specific proposal from the workers’ leaders over bonus issue to accommodate in the existing labour law. Come up with a specific written proposal, so we can consider to include bonus issue in the law to avert any dispute over it, said Mujibul Haque while addressing a roundtable titled “Garment workers’ salary and bonus: Eid Festival” held in the city yesterday. Imdadul Haq Milan, Editor of daily Kaler Kantho moderated the roundtable, which was orgained by the East West Media Limited. “I do not see any reason for discussing on the payment of salary and bonus for the workers before Eid as it is a routine work for the owners to pay them salary and bonus,” said Mujibul. The state minister, however, once again urged the owners to ensure payment of salary, bonus and other allowances to the workers by July 26. “If the issue relating to salary and bonus can be brought into a specific law, there will be no more dispute related to wages,” said Abdus Salam, Director General of Industrial Police. There are around 3355 RMG units and 1033 other industrial factories in the industrial zones outside Dhaka and among them, 351 factories are at risk as they would not be able to pay salary and bonus, and most of them are neither the member of BGMEA nor BKMEA. Meanwhile, factory owners claimed some 15 factories are running the risk of non-payment of wages by July 26 ahead of Eid while the remaining RMG units will pay salaries and allowances as per their capability within the government-set deadline. Syed Ahmed, Inspector General of Department of Inspection of Factories and Establishment suggested for preparing a specific structure of salary and bonus for the RMG workers.
