A Bangladesh official panel recommended on Monday that the government raises minimum wages for garment workers by 76 per cent following a string of disasters and protests over pay and conditions, an official said.
The board of government officials, garment manufacturers and union leaders said the minimum monthly wage for the nation’s four million garment workers should rise from 3,000 taka (HK$293) to 5,300 taka (HK$519).
“The wage board has recommended 5,300 taka as the minimum wage of the garment workers,” head of the Minimum Wage Board AK Roy told reporters after the meeting in Dhaka.
“The decision was taken through majority voting,” he said, adding that four of the six member panels voted in favour of the decision, but the owners’ representative rejected it.
The government pledged to raise wages by November, based on the board’s recommendation, after strikes in September saw tens of thousands of workers take to the streets, torch factories and clash with police to demand an increase.
The board’s recommendation on Monday must still be adopted by the government.