No minimum wages in 34 industries in Bangladesh
August 26th, 2010 - 4:14 pm ICT by IANSDhaka, Aug 26 (IANS) Known in the global market for its cheap labour, Bangladesh does not have minimum wages for 34 industries and has not revised wages in a dozen others for the past many years, a media report said Thursday.
The government is sitting on a proposal of the Minimum Wage Board (MWB) for fixing or reviewing legal minimum wages for a dozen industrial sectors having several million employees.
Important industries where no legal minimum wage has as yet been set include poultry, power and handloom, garment accessories manufacturing, ceramic, jewellery, cement, electronics, publications, paper, cable, beverage, brick, cigarettes, audio-visual products, newspaper, printing and dairy farm.
The MWB informed the government that minimum wages in at least 12 industrial sectors had not been reviewed in 14 to 28 years although such a review should be done every five years.
Sources in the labour ministry told New Age newspaper that workers in at least 34 industrial sectors, having a huge number of employees and contributing substantially to the country’s economy, were yet to have any legal minimum wages.
The Board is currently struggling to get minimum wages fixed for the money-spinning ready-made garment sector acceptable by both employers and workers.
The sector that netted $12 billion in export earnings last year, employs three million workers, mostly women.
There has been intermittent industrial violence in the garment sector due to poor wages and working conditions.
Prominent trade union leader Abul Bashar alleged that “the ruling class, led by politicians, hold an elitist attitude and always prefer to keep workers subservient to them”.
He said the workers, directly involved in production in mills, had never seen increase in their wages although the salaries of the managerial and clerical staff had been increased with the announcement of national pay scales.
National pay scales were announced at regular intervals as high officials in the government also benefit from them, Bashar said in an interview with New Age.
- Owners, workers both unhappy over Dhaka's wage fixing - Aug 25, 2010
- Violence in Dhaka garment sector as government readies wage revision - Jul 26, 2010
- Bangladesh to review wages after industrial violence - Dec 13, 2010
- New wages for Dhaka's garment workers - Jul 30, 2010
- Dhaka books 4,000 agitating garment workers - Aug 03, 2010
- Dhaka workers go on rampage to protest new wage structure (Lead) - Jul 30, 2010
- Bangladesh garment workers continue stir against new wages - Aug 02, 2010
- One dead as Bangladesh garment workers clash with police - Dec 12, 2010
- Hasina promises higher pay to garment sector workers - Jul 07, 2010
- Workers at two Indian eateries in US get $95,000 in back pay - Apr 05, 2011
- Give fair wage to Bangladesh workers: Parliamentary body - Jun 25, 2010
- BMS plans rally in Delhi against fuel price hike - Nov 05, 2011
- Zia blames 'foreign hand' for industrial violence - Nov 07, 2009
- No more FDI in Bangladesh garment sector - May 16, 2011
- Trade unions call nationwide strike Tuesday - Feb 23, 2012
Tags: 28 years, cheap labour, clerical staff, dairy farm, electronics publications, elitist attitude, export earnings, garment accessories, garment sector, handloom, industrial sectors, industrial violence, labour ministry, legal minimum wage, minimum wages, mwb, poor wages, ruling class, trade union leader, wages and working conditions