Members of the wage board for the country’s readymade garment (RMG) industry will sit on May 24 to review the minimum wage for the sector’s workers amid demands for a hike to Tk23,000.
The RMG workers’ wage was last reviewed in 2018, when Tk8,000 was set as the minimum monthly wage for an entry-level worker.
The newly-formed minimum wage board for the RMG sector workers will hold its first meeting on May 24, media reported citing an official of the Labour Ministry.
The board members will discuss different aspects and finally make recommendations.
It will take some time for submitting their final proposal, he added.
The government formed the minimum wage board on April 9 by announcing appointments of representatives of the RMG sector owners and workers for the board to make their recommendations for the workers’ wage hike.
Former president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) Md Siddiqur Rahman and Bangladesh National Garment Workers Employees League president Sirajul Islam Rony was appointed the owners’ and workers’ representatives respectively.
The wage board has four other permanent members, headed by a senior district judge.
An entry-level garment worker is currently receiving Tk8,000 as minimum monthly wage with Tk4,100 as basic pay, Tk2,050 as house rent, Tk600 as medical allowance, Tk350 as transport allowance, and Tk900 as food allowance.
Labour leaders demanded Tk23,000 as minimum wage with 65% basic payment.
In recent months, labour organizations demanded a rise in minimum monthly wage ranging from Tk20,000 to Tk25,000 for entry-level workers, taking high inflation into consideration.
RMG industry is the largest foreign currency earning sector that fetched $42.61 billion in the last FY22.
It was about 82% of the country’s total $52.08 billion export earnings, according to official data.
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