100 pc garment workers get salary, Eid bonus : BGMEA
By Mir Afroz Zaman
The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) has claimed that 100% of the garment factory workers of the country belonging to BGMEA-BKMEA have been given salary and bonus before Eid.
BGMEA president SM Mannan Kochi gave this information in a circular sent to the media on Wednesday (April 10).
He said, "Compared to other times, the context this time is slightly different. The apparel industry is going through a critical moment. In the last five years, the cost of production has increased by almost 50 percent, the bank interest has now reached 13-14 percent.
Stating that wages have increased by 56 percent since January, he said, "It has become difficult for many factories, because despite the increase in wages, the right price of products is not being matched." Instead, the price of products has fallen by 6-18 percent. In this situation, the factories are being forced to accept orders at discounted prices just to survive.
The BGMEA president said, “Bonus has to be paid as per the new wage structure this Eid, which has created a difficult situation for many factories. However, despite all the odds, the entrepreneurs have tried their best to pay the salary and bonus before Eid, many have made personal sacrifices.
SM Mannan Kochi said that BGMEA along with the government has taken advance preparatory measures to ensure that the workers get their salaries and bonuses properly before Eid. Accordingly, monitoring of these factories starts a month before Eid to ensure 100% salary and allowances. 22 teams of 50 people are monitoring the factories all over Bangladesh.
Some labor related issues were found in 25 factories during monitoring, which have been resolved. As a result, 100 percent of the factories have paid March salary and Eid bonus. To our knowledge, there is no such worker who has not received salary or bonus.
The BGMEA president also said that all the factories have given leave to the workers and the workers have returned home with salary and bonus. He said, "Labor leaders and workers have cooperated in this effort."
