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Labour leaders see new wage announcement by Dec may ease RMG unrest
03 Nov 2026
Source: The Business Standard

Labour leaders believe an announcement by December on a new minimum wage for garment workers, with the revised pay taking effect from January, could help restore normalcy in industrial areas amid ongoing wage protests and violence.

They raised the proposal with the government at a meeting with the home and labour ministers at the Secretariat today (2 November), according to sources familiar with the discussion.

The labour ministry is also positive about expediting the wage-setting process. While some garment manufacturers oppose an early announcement, others are not opposed to it.

They also favour communicating the proposed timeline to workers soon, Babul Akter, workers' representative on the wage board, said at the meeting, sources said.

After the meeting, Babul told The Business Standard, "I don't know what the owners will decide. But whatever happens, we will work to ensure that the new wage is announced by December and workers receive it from January."

A senior labour ministry official, seeking anonymity, told TBS, "We have informally asked the wage board to submit its proposal by December, if possible."

Salahuddin Shopon, president of the IndustriAll Bangladesh Council, who attended the meeting, said they had urged the wage board to meet quickly to facilitate an announcement by December.

"If workers receive a message that a new wage will be announced by December, it will play a positive role in normalising the situation," he told TBS.

Earlier today, Babul also told a press conference that the wage board should not delay the process in the name of holding meetings.

He called for consecutive meetings, even at night if necessary, to ensure the new wage is announced by December and workers receive it from January.

Labour Secretary Md Abdur Rahman Tarafder told TBS that the ministry could not set a deadline for the wage board as it was an independent body. "However, we will try to ensure that it submits its recommendations as soon as possible," he said.

A senior Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) leader, speaking on condition of anonymity, said December would be a reasonable time for the announcement as the existing minimum wage would complete three years that month.

"However, the announcement must come from the wage board," he said, adding that although the law allows the board up to six months to submit its proposal, it could reach a unanimous decision after just two meetings without violating the law.

Mohammad Hatem, president of the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), said the industry was not in a position to implement a new wage by December.

He explained that manufacturers needed time to negotiate new prices with international buyers based on the revised wage structure.

The current minimum monthly wage for garment workers is Tk12,500. Workers have been protesting, demanding an increase to Tk30,000.

The existing minimum wage came into effect in December 2023. As the labour law provides for a wage review every three years, the current rate will complete its three-year term in December.

 
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