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RMG workers block Gazipur highway for back pay

September 24, 2018 00:00:00


Workers of a readymade garment factory staging demonstrations on the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway in the Maleker Bari area of Gazipur on Sunday, demanding their back pay — bdnews24.com

Garment workers demanding back pay at a Gazipur factory have blocked the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway for over four hours on Sunday, report agencies.

Police and protesters have clashed during the demonstration.

The protesters blocked nearly 25 km of road from Tongi to Salna, causing heavy traffic congestion on both sides of the road.

According to police and protesters, workers have been protesting since Saturday demanding back pay for employees of Knit and Knitex Ltd in Gazipur's Degerchala area. Agitated workers returned to the streets around 10:00 am on Sunday after the families of several workers reported that they had fallen sick after drinking water from the tank at the factory.

Order was restored in the area and vehicles finally began to move around 2:30 pm.

Workers at the factory had received half of August's wages ahead of Eid, said local thana chief Kazi Ismail Hossain. Though the remainder of the pay was to be distributed on September 12, the factory authorities failed to pay, leading to the protests.

The protests had started around 10:00 pm on Saturday, but police deployed in the area had been able to restore order.

Several of the employees began to fall ill on Saturday night."The factory authorities were planning to close it without paying us," factory worker Amena Begum said.

"They also mixed something with the water supply so that they would not have to pay. Several people have fallen ill after drinking the water and have been taken to hospitals."

The Knit and Knitex workers boycotted work on Sunday and blocked the gate to the factory.

The protesters began blocking the road and setting tyres on fire after rumours spread that some of the sick workers had died.

The Knitex factory and some others nearby were vandalised. A large section of the highway was blocked as workers from other factories joined the protests.

Police made several attempts to disperse the protesters, but were fended off. At one point, police attempted to use teargas shells.

Meanwhile, the authorities of around 50 factories of the area shut down their factories for the day in a bid to avert further trouble, said the police officer.


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