Bangladesh Calls for a Minimum Wage of 23,000 Taka — Retail Bum

Bangladesh has garnered recent attention due to a contentious minimum wage debate, which has led to disgruntled garment workers taking to the streets for the second consecutive week.

According to the police, a minimum of 10,000 workers abandoned their work shifts and organized protests in Gazipur, the largest industrial city in the country. The protests also saw a six-story factory set ablaze, resulting in one of the two fatalities reported.

Authorities also reported that an additional 7,000 individuals participated in protests in the central towns of Ashulia and Hemayetpur.

Why workers are protesting

Garment workers and their unions are steadfast in their demand for a monthly minimum wage of 23,000 Bangladeshi taka (approximately US$209), a historic consensus achieved by the unions for the first time. In contrast, the government’s wage board, which is primarily comprised of garment factory owners, is pushing for a minimum wage of 10,400 taka (US$94).

The existing minimum wage, last updated in 2018, stands at 8,000 taka, equivalent to nearly US$73. Over this period, Bangladesh has witnessed an average annual inflation rate of around 5.5%, with a notable surge in 2022, reaching 7.7%.