Open Beximco garments factories immediately: Workers, employees and officials demand
The agitation stems from December 2024, when the government decided to close 16 factories under the Beximco Industrial Park due to a lack of orders and significant defaulted loans
Highlights:
- The government decided to close 16 factories under the Beximco Industrial Park due to a lack of orders and significant defaulted loans
- The move was met with protests by workers who were laid off as a result
- Workers demand the factories be reopened immediately and their jobs be reinstated
- They also demand that opening back-to-back LCs be allowed
- Protests took a violent turn yesterday when workers torched a factory and damaged many vehicles
Beximco workers, employees, and officials, alongside others concerned, today (23 January) demanded that all factories under the Beximco Garments Division be reopened immediately and lay-offs be withdrawn.
The call was made at a press conference held at the Capital Market Journalists' Forum.
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Syed Md Enam Ullah, head of Personnel & Administration (CFDL) under the Beximco Garments Division, Beximco Textile Division Ltd read out a written statement with three demands.
The other demands are:
Banking services should be restored and opening back-to-back LCs be allowed to facilitate the start of export trade and receiving work orders from foreigners. The third demand is to take immediate steps to repay all outstanding salaries and company liabilities while keeping the factories and businesses running.
"Beximco Industrial Park's internal audit revealed that selling all its companies would generate Tk15,500 crore, but settling dues through layoffs would require Tk22,000 crore," said head of administration Abdul Kaium.
According to a planning division official, workers are searching for company officials, fearing retaliation.
"Workers don't know the owner; they follow our instructions. With the current crisis, they're after us. We can't provide answers and are on the run," he said.
"We do not know what the owners have done with the loans. Permission should be granted to open LCs. Let the factories operate. The expenses and workers' salaries can be paid from the export earnings. If necessary, let the profits remain with the banks, but the factories must be reopened," he added.
A group of agitated Beximco workers set fire to the factory of Grameen Fabrics and Fashion Ltd in Kashimpur of Gazipur yesterday evening, demanding reopening of 16 closed factories.
They also blocked roads and torched vehicles.
Several journalists were injured during the protests.
The agitation stems from December 2024, when the government decided to close 16 factories under the Beximco Industrial Park due to a lack of orders and significant defaulted loans.
Workers have been protesting the irregular payment of wages for a prolonged period.
The workers demanded the reopening of all closed factories, affecting over 42,000 employees, and the resumption of banking services, and the payment of overdue wages.
A worker representative said"Among us are 2,000 people with disabilities, over 5,000 senior citizens, and members of the third gender. Closing these factories will push these vulnerable groups into dire conditions."
The representatives highlighted Beximco Garments' contribution to Bangladesh's export earnings, citing that it previously generated $3 million monthly through international sales. They claimed the closures deprived the economy of valuable foreign reserves, exacerbating the current reserve deficit.
"We appeal to the interim government to ensure our livelihoods are protected. The closure of a globally renowned group like Beximco contradicts its promise of poverty eradication," the representatives added.
The closed factories, owned by Salman F Rahman, a former adviser to ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, had been facing financial difficulties for months.
The government had provided loans to cover wages temporarily, but the closure announcement sparked widespread discontent.
Workers have staged multiple protests, including a road blockade on 21 December last year, which was dispersed by law enforcement using tear gas and rubber bullets. On 14 January 2025, workers organised a human chain stretching 11km, followed by a mass rally earlier in the day.
