New wage structure for RMG workers before Eid

Labour, Employment and Expatriate Welfare Minister Eng. Khandker Mosharraf Hossain said yesterday that the government might announce the revised minimum wage structure for the readymade garment (RMG) workers on July 28.
The Labour Minister also hinted that the new wage structure would be implemented before Eid-ul-Fitre. 
“The wage structure review committee, formed by the government, was scheduled to submit its report on July 28 and hopefully we would make a formal announcement after receiving the report,” Khandker Mosharraf Hossain told the media immediately after speaking at a seminar on “UN
Global Compact: Upholding the Labour Standards” held at a city hotel. The Bangladesh Enterprise Institute (BEI) and the CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) Centre jointly organised the seminar.
He said the government had formed a committee headed by a judge to review the existing wage structures of 46 private sector units, including the RMG sector.
The government was seriously considering increase in the RMG sector’s minimum wage structure as the existing one was too meagre to meet their daily needs.  
“I don’t know what is happening inside (within the committee), but the committee would lay emphasis on the needs of the RMG workers before finalising its recommendations,” he said.
The Minister expected the new wage structure would consider the workers’ demand and the RMG unit owners’ capability.
Talking about the labour’s welfare issue, the Minister said a review of the Labour Act-2006 was now underway following the directive of the Prime Minister to remove all discrimination in wages between male and female workers.
Referring to the present unrest in the RMG sector, the Minister said that the introduction of formal trade union (FTU) in the RMG sector was indispensable for the welfare of both the workers and the owners. He said the process to introduce FTU was already in progress. “In this regard, we have already talked to all the stakeholders and held discussions with the ILO (International Labour Organisation) officials,” he said.
He said the government was committed to improving the labour standard. And, the ILO regulations were being discussed by the government to enact an effective legal framework to introduce FTU.  
 
Courtesy of The Independent