Labour and Employment Minister Ariful Haque Choudhury on Sunday urged readymade garment (RMG) workers to return to their workplaces from the streets as their demand for forming a wage board with determination of the minimum wage has been met.

He made the call after announcing a six-member wage board for determining new wages for garment workers at his ministry at the Secretariat here.

Choudhury hinted that a vested quarter is out to bring workers onto the streets under an orchestrated plot to create an unstable situation ahead of December despite the announcement of the formation of the wage board. There might be external instigation behind the workers' street protests, he said.

"We have formed a six-member Minimum Wage Board in accordance with the Labour Act. The board's activities would begin today as a meeting would be held as soon as possible to discuss and decide on the minimum wage for workers," he said.

Headed by Senior District and Sessions Judge Sheikh Ashfaqur Rahman, other members of the board are Dhaka University Public Administration Department Professor Dr Mosleh Uddin Ahmad, Bangladesh Employers' Federation Joint Secretary General Asif Ayub, Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Sramik Dal Central Committee President Anwar Hossain, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) Director ABM Shamsuddin and Bangladesh Garments and Industrial Workers Federation General Secretary Babul Akhter.

Earlier, a meeting was held at Srama Bhaban in Bijoynagar here with representatives of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) over the issue.

Regarding the demands raised by labour leaders, he said, "We certainly have some responsibilities regarding the issues they have raised. We will work on those issues through discussions with them. Just as we have to protect our industries, we also have to ensure the fulfilment of workers' legitimate demands."

SM/CitizenTimes