Representatives of the global apparel buyers and brands stressed Thursday the quick implementation of the tripartite agreement on releasing detained workers and reopening of trade union offices in the Ashulia industrial belt.The persuasion came at a monthly meeting of the buyers’ forum, a platform of the representatives of global apparel buyers and brands and leaders of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) held in the city, meeting participants said.The agreement among the ministry of labour and employment, the BGMEA and IndustriAll Bangladesh Council (IBC) came weeks after numerous labour rights actvists and workers were detained and interrogated for holding protests in Ashulia in December last demanding higher minimum wages.In the agreement, all parties agreed to release detainees, reopen shuttered zonal offices and either pay or reinstate workers who were fired for taking part in the protest.The forum wanted the updates of the tripartite agreement, Mahmud Hasan Khan, said vice president of the BGMEA.All the detained labour leaders and workers have already been freed on bail and police are being scrutinising the merits of the cases filed against workers and union leaders, he told the meeting.He added that the police would decide on which cases would be charge-sheeted or the final report to be made.The meeting also discussed that trade unions, which have submitted their returns properly, should be allowed in the country’s readymade garment sector, according to the meeting participants.Issues such as the problems facing foreign employees and the lengthy process of getting development samples sent by the buyers were also discussed in the meeting, they said.It takes two to three days to receive the development samples sent by the buyers from airport and in most cases, airport officials demand bribes while delivering the samples, they alleged.”We will go to Bangladesh Investment Development Authority to solve the problems of foreign employees in the country,” the BGMEA leader said.
