Our Correspondent :
Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (BJMC) will start clearing the dues of Tk1,677 crore to the workers of state-owned jute mills in Khulna region from Monday.
In Khulna zone, 15,000 workers had lost their jobs after seven state-owned jute mills ere closed on July 1 amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to the BJMC, 10,364 terminated workers will receive Tk1,162.31 crore through golden handshake, 4,680 retired workers will be provided Tk372.40 crore, and 21,351 transferred workers will receive Tk114.92 crore.
Besides, the workers are owed Tk27.64 crore in wages.
According to BJMC sources, the jute mill workers will be paid 50% of the total seven types of debt including provident fund, gratuity, golden handshake at their respective banks and the remaining 50% in the form of savings certificates. The bank account numbers of the workers have already reached BJMC and the process of paying the dues has started.
On Monday, BJMC will hold a ceremony to kick-off the payment of dues. State Minister for Labour and Employment Begum Monnujan Sufian will initiate the payment among the workers of Platinum Jute Mill at 12pm.
Md Golam Rabbani, regional coordinator of BJMC and project head of Platinum Jute Mill, said that according to the audit report, the workers are owed Tk1,677 crore and they will be paid exactly what they are owed.
On June 26, Textiles and Jute Minister Golam Dastagir Gazi announced the closure of 25 jute mills under BJMC from July 1, and with that, 24,886 permanent workers were sent to retirement through Golden Handshake.
Later, after a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on the closure of the state-owned jute mills and payment of dues, the ministry said on July 2 that workers of the closed mills would get an average of Tk13.86 lakh and a maximum of Tk54 lakh as compensation.
