The union of manufacturers and exporters of knitwear in Bangladesh requested the suspension for two years of the increase in the minimum wage for textile workers.
Fixed in the labour law in 2013,5% increase on 1 January 2021 (+400 BDT) increases the monthly minimum wage from 8000 to 8400 BDT (about 82 EUR/month).
The employers' federation* justify its request to the Ministry of Labour for a moratorium by highlighting the high impact of the VOCID-19 pandemic on exports.
Indeed, with the health crisis the payers have cancelled orders and extended payment deadlines, putting plants in difficulty to pay their employees.
Workers' trade unions believe that raising the minimum wage is an inalienable right, and stress that it would be shameful to suspend it.
Because the pandemic also had an impact on the purchasing power of workers Many have lost their jobs and those who have been able to keep them do much less overtime.
The Bangladeshi government should decide quickly...
* Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA)
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Source(s): The Daily Star
Editor(s): L.VERBOUW