The government has so far fixed minimum wages for workers of only 40 sectors while a large number are working in manufacturing industries, service and other sectors.
The Minimum Wage Board under the ministry of labour and employment declared minimum wages for workers in 40 private sectors since 1983 out of 100 which have employed millions of workers.
A large segment of the workforce, mostly from the informal sectors, remains outside the purview of the minimum wages, as most of them have no trade union rights, labour directorate officials, trade unionists and rights activists said.
According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), the country's total labour force stands at about 56.7 million. Of the total working age population, 54.1 million are employed and 2.6 million are looking for jobs (unemployed).
Among the employed population, some 80 per cent (about 43.28 million) are employed in the informal sector and the rest 20 per cent (about 10.82 million) in the formal sector, mostly working in manufacturing, services and other industries. Many of them are working under the minimum wage structure.
But the large workforce, mostly working in the informal sector, still remains outside the wage structure and is leading an inhuman life.
The government declared the minimum wages for the country's garment industry workers in 2013, but trade union leaders said many of the RMG units are still not paying the wages in full.
"The government has fixed Tk 5,300 as minimum wage for a worker but some 40 per cent of 4,500 garment factories are not giving the fixed wages," said a RMG trade union leader Baharine Sultan Bahar.
Not only in RMG industry, workers in a large number of sectors brought under a minimum wage structure are also being deprived of getting the minimum wages.
The trade union leaders cited a number of sectors-hotel and restaurants, rice mills, petrol pump, bakery and confectionery, bidi industry, shoe industry, furniture, saw mills, jute press and belling, fishing and trawler, cinema hall, rubber and shrimp industries - where most of the workers are not getting the minimum wages.
Although the government has declared minimum wages for 40 sectors, according to industry sources, there remain many areas like ceramics, cements, electronic industry, brick kilns, cable industry, dairy farm and cigarette industry which should be brought under the minimum wages framework.
Among them, the highest amount of minimum wage is drawn by workers from construction and furniture sector (Tk 9,982), tannery industries (Tk 8750), oil mills and vegetable products (Tk 7,420), land ports (Tk 7,050) and saw mills (Tk 6,850). The lowest minimum wages are fixed for workers in type foundry (Tk 521) and petrol pump (Tk 792).
The absence of constructive unionism has put workers both in formal and informal sectors in jeopardy, leaving them with no means to fight for their rights to a national minimum wage, appropriate work environment, safety condition and healthcare facilities, they added.
According to workers and trade union leaders, owners are tactically obstructing workers in forming trade unions in their factories to continue their exploitation.
Besides, workers are falling prey to various conspiracies of the owners and as a result, they are failing to build any resistance against exploitation.
Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters' Association vice-president Shahidullah Azim, however, said in the past, owners had a negative attitude towards trade unions because of some 'bitter experiences.'
But owners now do not have any negative attitude towards trade unions as workers are educated and have a sense of responsibility, he said.
At present, Mr Azim said, the number of trade unions in RMG factories is about 345 as against 138 before the Rana Plaza collapse.
"We always welcome any constructive trade union activities but will not allow any destructive activities."
mzrbd@yahoo.com
Only 40 sectors out of 100 under minimum wage framework
FE Report | Published: May 01, 2015 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00
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