The government has formed a new minimum wage board to determine revised wages for workers in the readymade garment (RMG) sector, Labour and Employment Minister Ariful Haque Chowdhury has announced.

He made the announcement at around 11:30 am on Sunday (November 1) at the Secretariat.

The minister said the government had formed a six-member minimum wage board in accordance with the Labour Act. Senior District Judge Sheikh Ashfakur Rahman has been appointed chairman of the board. Its activities will begin on Sunday.

He said the board would hold its first meeting as soon as possible and announce its decision on the minimum wage after discussions.

The minister also urged garment workers to end their street protests, return to their respective workplaces and resume production.

Earlier, on Saturday (October 31), the labour minister held a meeting with representatives of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) at the Labour Building in Bijoynagar, Dhaka. Following the meeting, he had announced that the wage board would be formed on Sunday.

Referring to the demands raised by labour leaders, the minister said the government would address their concerns through discussions and take action on each issue gradually. He stressed that protecting industrial operations and ensuring workers’ legitimate rights were equally important.

Meanwhile, garment workers have been staging demonstrations and blocking roads in several areas of Mirpur, including Mirpur-10, Mirpur-11 and Mirpur-12, for the past few days, demanding that the monthly minimum wage be set at Tk 30,000.