Photo: Collected
Police have arrested 29 people since Monday morning over the protests by garment workers in the capital’s Mirpur. Five cases have so far been filed over the protests, which are being held to demand that the minimum wage be raised to Tk 30,000.
Police Additional DIG Mohidul Islam gave this information on Monday afternoon.
According to the police, the 29 people were detained from the Mirpur area since the morning over the protest incidents.
Mohidul Islam said the police are on alert, keeping watch so that no one can create chaos in the name of a workers’ movement. He also said law enforcement agencies are taking a tough stance to ensure that no one can create instability by exploiting a political identity.
From Monday morning, the presence of law enforcement personnel in the Mirpur area was noticeable. However, vehicles ran normally on the roads.
On Sunday, the previous day, when roads were blockaded in Mirpur, protesters clashed with police. Police later dispersed the protesters. At least 50 people were arrested that day over incidents in Mirpur, Gazipur, Savar and Ashulia.
Background
According to a bdnews24.com report of 26 October, garment workers blockaded roads in the capital’s Uttara on 14 October demanding a minimum wage of Tk 30,000. The report did not give a separate date for the start of the movement.
According to the Labour Ministry, letters were sent on 15 October to the Bangladesh Employers’ Federation and the workers’ side seeking names of members for the new wage board, and Labour Secretary Abdur Rahman Tarafdar said the gazette would be published soon, bdnews24.com reported on 26 October.
By the numbers
The Minimum Wage Board finalised the minimum monthly wage for garment workers at Tk 12,500 on 26 November 2023, The Daily Star Bangla reported that day.
According to a bdnews24.com report of 26 October, the wage set in 2023 took effect from the following month. It raised wages by 56.25 percent from the previous Tk 8,000. The report also said that as the amended labour law set the term for wage revision at three years, this structure’s term is ending in November.
At a glance
Under Section 138 of the labour law, the Minimum Wage Board consists of a chairman, a neutral member, a representative of employers and a representative of workers, bdnews24.com reported on 26 October.
Sources
Original report: Bangladesh Pratidin
Background sources: bdnews24.com, 26 October 2026; The Daily Star Bangla, 26 November 2023
