RMG workers block Nabinagar-Chandra road demanding unpaid wages

Workers of an RMG factory have blocked the Nabinagar-Chandra road at Baipail intersection in Ashulia demanding unpaid wages.

The blockade was started by workers of a factory named Generation Next at 10am today (21 October).

The blockade left the Nabinagar-Chandra road in complete disarray. Besides, vehicular movement on Baipail-Abdullahpur road was also halted, with heavy traffic on both lanes of the road.

According to aggrieved workers, the factory authority is not paying them their wages and other dues for the last three months. They even shut down the factory a few days ago without any payment.

Although the authority assured the workers multiple times to pay their dues, they did not follow through. Not only the workers but the staff of the factory are also not getting their salaries for the past three months, the workers said.

"I am going through a terrible situation. Me and my family are almost starving as our house rent and grocery bills are piling up. I am not even getting a job somewhere else," said Saiful Islam, a worker of the factory.

"The authority had shut down the factory two months ago without paying our salaries for one month. In total, salaries of three months are now pending. We have not received our dues though Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association [BGMEA] and the Ministry of Industries assured us of payment. That's why we have taken to the streets. Our protest will continue till we get our dues," Saiful added.

Contacted, an official of the industrial police said that the workers of a RMG factory had blocked the Nabinagar-Chandra road and are protesting for their dues since the morning.

"We are on the spot, trying to disperse the workers and solve the crisis," the official said.

However, Superintendent of Industrial Police-1 Md Sarowar Alam couldn't be reached for comments.

Workers of the Generation Next factory were still protesting as of filing this report around 1pm.