77 striking RMG workers fall sick

FE Report | Published: August 01, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: July 31, 2014 23:00:27

About 77 readymade garment (RMG) workers of the Tuba Group fell sick until Thursday, the fourth day of their hunger strike.
Nearly 1,600 labourers from five factories of the apparel group in the city have gone on the hunger strike demanding their wage arrears and other benefits.
At least 10 of the sick workers were hospitalised until 5pm on the day, the agitating workers said.
If the situation is allowed to linger on, the health condition of many agitating workers might turn critical, the warned.
Around 66 workers have been receiving treatment including saline intake on their garment factory floor.
Meanwhile, a BGMEA top leader said the wage arrears and allowances of the striking Tuba Group workers would be paid within seven working days.
SM Mannan Kochi, vice president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters' Association (BGMEA), made the announcement at a press briefing at the BGMEA headquarters in the city Thursday afternoon.
When asked about the BGMEA's pledge for resolving the situation within seven days, Garment Workers Solidarity Forum leader Moshrefa Mishu said: "We have rejected their (BGMEA) call and decided to continue our programme."
The workers will hold a press conference today (Friday) on the factory premises to give their reaction in this connection.
Moshrefa Mishu has been taking part in the hunger strike since the first day.
"As long as the workers do not get their wages, we will continue this movement," she said.
However, there remains a dispute over the volume of outstanding wages and benefits. According to the agitating workers, the amount is Tk 45.69 million against three months' wages, overtime and festival allowance while the management says the workers worked only for the month of May.
"They stopped working since June 9 as the management failed to provide salary of May," said Md. Forhad Hossain, Manager for Finance Accounts of the Tuba Group.  
Asked, Moshrefa Mishu said: "The workers have the records as to whether they work or not."
On the other hand, BGMEA Vice-President at the press conference said that the workers were supposed to get wages and benefits for the months of May, June and July and the festival allowance.
While visiting the Tuba Group at Badda in the city, it was found that most of the striking workers were sitting or lying down on the fifth floor.
In one room workers were found delivering speeches demanding three months' unpaid wages and festival allowances. A number of trade union leaders and left-leaning political activists were also seen present there volunteers.
The apparel factory owner's mother-in-law Laili Begum is practically held a hostage in the packaging room on the ninth floor. Workers are standing guard there and also taking care of her there. She is sleeping on the floor in a sari supplied by the workers.
However, there is an allegation that the Tuba Group and the BGMEA have intentionally used the 1,600 workers as the pawns to free Delwar Hossain, managing director of Tuba Group, who is now in jail in the Tazreen Fashions fire case. The fire incident claimed 117 lives in 2012.
Tazreen Fashions Limited and Tuba Group Managing Director Delwar Hossain and his wife Mahmuda Akter Mita, also chairman of the garment factory, were sent to jail after the couple surrendered to a Dhaka court seeking bail in February last.
The BGMEA has made several attempts to resolve the crisis and announced several dates to pay the wages. But the factory could not meet the timeline.
On July 23, Tuba Group's workers protested in front of the BGMEA building.
Afterwards BGMEA Labour Standing Committee Chairman Ahad Ali Ansari said: "(Tuba Group) was supposed to deposit the money in the bank. But another Tuba Group factory drew that money from the bank. So, we could not pay these workers."
Md. Forhad Hossain, Manager for Finance Accounts of Tuba Group, said they reached an agreement with the BGMEA leaders that if they could help secure bail of Delwar Hossain, they would pay all dues of the workers.
"But the BGMEA leaders failed to resolve the issue," he said. At the press conference Thursday BGMEA vice president SM Mannan urged the workers to have patience over the issues.
Citing the devastating fire at the Tazreen Fashions, a unit of the Tuba Group, he said that the subsequent imprisonment of its managing director and the 'financial crisis' of Tuba Group made the management unable to pay wages and other benefits over the last three months-May, June and July.
Though an initiative was taken by the management to pay the dues by selling factory's land or a part of its building or in any other way, unfortunately it (payment) was not possible.
In the circumstances, the BGMEA tried to make sure that the workers receive wages and other benefits of at least one month before the Eid.
"But lastly, it was not possible because of imprisonment of its owner and in the absence of cooperation from the banks," the BGMEA leader said.