By IANS,
Dhaka: More than 30 people were injured in continuing clashes in Ashulia Industrial Area in suburban Dhaka Tuesday morning as workers protested the closure of factories by employers.
The workers are protesting against the decision of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) to close all apparel units in Ashulia for an indefinite period.
In violent clashes with police, the workers set fire to five vehicles, Star Online reported.
The employers’ collectively decided Monday night to close all factories in the area following two days of violence when over 200 persons were injured.
Police said thousands of garment workers went to join work at about 8:00 a.m. but found the factories closed as per BGMEA’s decision.
The workers started demonstrations and ransacked and torched vehicles, website of The Daily Star said.
The law enforcers, including police and Rapid Action Battalion, baton charged them and also lobbed teargas canisters to break up the demonstration.
Ashulia, an industrial belt, turned into a battlefield with several thousand garment-workers blockading the busy road and vandalising vehicles. The workers demanded Tk 5,000 ($86.3) minimum wages.
The Bangladeshi employers do not want to pay more than Taka 1,800 ($25.8), the Vienna-based International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) said in its global survey released here last week.
The ITUC said the Bangladeshi garment workers are “world’s poorest paid” and that anti-worker moves are on the rise.
Readymade garments and knitwear are Bangladesh’s largest export earners, netting $12 billion in 2009.