Bangladesh garment workers’ protest shuts 100 factories
Workers demand better wages in dispute with factory owners as protest enters fifth day
Police have used batons, rubber bullets and tear gas to stop protests by garment workers in Bangladesh who want higher wages while factory owners fear they may miss shipments to the United States and Europe.
Police and news reports say the fifth day of protests on Wednesday in two industrial districts near Dhaka forced authorities to close more than 100 factories for the day.
A police official in the Gazipur district says the workers have dispersed there. The official, named Mosharaf Hossain, would not confirm any injuries in Gazipur.
The Prothom Alo newspaper reported clashes in the Narayanganj district injured at least 10 people.
The workers are demanding 8,114 takas (around HK$795) in place of 3,000 takas as a monthly minimum wage.
Bangladesh earns US$20 billion a year from garment exports.