State Minister for Labour Begum Monnujan Sufian on Saturday said that the production in the garment factories would continue unless Prime Minister directed them to shut down. Factory owners expressed their eagerness to keep factories open as long as they had supply orders. They also sought support from the government to pay wages and allowances to the workers during upcoming Eid festivals. The labour rights groups, however, demanded immediate leave of workers with wages to protect the country’s labour intensive industry from COVID-19 that killed two people and infected 24 so far in the country. We see in every crisis, factory owners gain cash incentives and policy supports but workers always remain deprived. The government and factory owners should allow immediate leave for the workers with wages to protect thousands of workers and the readymade garment sector amid the COVID-19 outbreak.
Global buyers have so far cancelled or put on hold orders of readymade garment products worth $607.89 million from Bangladesh as many fashion brands have shut their stores in Europe and North America due to the coronavirus outbreak. Bangladeshi exporters said that the value of cancelled or held up orders would increase further as they were getting notices to cancel orders or delay shipments every hour. According to the BGMEA, 264 RMG factories informed the trade body till Saturday about order cancellations or shipment delay notices they had received from the buyers for export orders worth $607.89 million. Amid a surge in cancellations or requests to put export orders on hold, BGMEA sent a letter to the global buyers urging them not to cancel or hold orders till July so that workers could get their wages and allowances during two Eid festivals.
Despite all concerns, we urge the government, BGMEA, BKMEA and other apex bodies to shut all the factories to contain the pandemic. It is not a time of profit making, but rather of saving the lives of people and the community. The low-paid RMG workers are too vulnerable as they work in congested areas with poor workplace security and poor health service.
