Sramik Karmachari Oikya Parishad, the platform of labour organisations, is planning to wage a movement as the government is yet to respond to its nine-point demands.
Agitation programmes will be decided at a meeting of the representatives of labour organisations and trade unions scheduled for November 27 in Dhaka if the government fails to meet the demands, leaders of the organisation told New Age on Tuesday.
They will hold a mass contact programme with the workers before the meeting to wage the movement, the Trade Union Centre president, Sahidullah Chowdhury, said.
SKOP leaders alleged that the government was pushing them towards a movement by not heeding the demands they took up with the labour and employment minister on October 3.
The demands include living wages and workers’ right to trade unionism and amendment to the Bangladesh Labour Act 2006 in keeping with the ILO Convention 87 and 98.
The labour and employment minister, Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, however, said he would need some time to respond to the demands.
The SKOP leaders said the government had enough time to respond to the demands as a month has already gone by since the submission of the demands and they would have no option but to wage a movement if the demands were not met.
Nazrul Islam Khan, president of Jatiyatabadi Sramik Dal, the labour organisation backed by the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party, said, ‘We will be compelled to wage a movement if the government ignores our demands.’
Roy Ramesh Chandra, general secretary of Jatiya Sramik League, the labour organisation backed by the ruling Awami League, said SKOP would hold workers’ representative meeting in Dhaka on November 27 to decide the next course of action if the demands were not met.
SKOP for the last time observed a six-hour road, railway and waterway blockade beginning 6:00am and 24-hour industrial strike across the country on October 15, 2006 to push for its six-point demands, including implementation of all agreements signed with SKOP, change in the new labour law, implementation of the minimum wage for workers and end to privatisation of nationalised mills and factories.
SKOP, which has held no agitation programme such as strike or road blockade since October 15, 2006, is planning to hold such programmes as
the workers continued being deprived of their minimum living wages and other legitimate rights, the leaders said.
The nine-point demands include withdrawal of a ban on trade unionism in different industrial sectors and introduction of trade unionism for government employees and workers in all sectors, including apparel, construction, agriculture and transport, and domestic helps to ensure productivity and congenial industrial relations.
SKOP also demands allowing workers of all sectors to form trade unions and elect their leaders in keeping with the ILO Convention 87 and 98.
The demands include repeal of all provisions of the Labour Act which are against the interests of workers, repeal of the ordinance promulgated in 2009 amending the act and restoration of the provisions for owner’s punishment for violation of workers’ rights and making provisions for disposal of cases filed by inspector of factories in three months.
Increasing the number of labour courts, establishing labour appeals courts in all divisions, making provisions for empowering workers and their trade unions to appeal against labour court verdicts, ensuring overtime bills for workers in all sectors, expanding the state-run transport network and cancellation of contract labour system are also in their charter of demands.
The demands related to wages include minimum living wages, a permanent wage commission, review of the wages every two years, minimum national wage at Tk 5,000, introduction of dearness allowance, gratuity for all workers amounting to wages for two months for every year in service, removal of disparity in wages for male and female workers for the same job and a monitoring cells with the representation of trade unions for inspection of industries.
SKOP also demands that no state-run industries such as banks, insurance, gas, railway, airlines and power should be transferred to private owners in any form, including formation of holding companies or share transfer.
It demands renationalisation and rerunning of all factories and industries closed after being transferred to the private sector and appropriate steps for rerunning of sick industries.
SKOP demands immediate implementation of the contracts signed between the government or authorities and SKOP, Sangram Parishad and other labour organisations, including those of apparel workers.
The demands also include ensuring job security, health services, transport and accommodation for workers and an end to intentional transfer to harass workers.
Regarding the expatriate workers, SKOP demands an end to harassment at the airport, introduction of bonus of 5 per cent of the remittance, ensuring the rights of expatriate workers in the countries concerned and an end to exploitation and cheating.
