Garment workers' woes!
Photo: Palash Khan
Md. F. Rahman's write-up on the issue, published in the pages of your 'Star Business' on June 19th is an eye-opener. However, in the report, he has missed out on an important matter that needed clarification! In the fourth paragraph of the write up, he wrote quoting Saidul Islam, a garment worker: "last year he was earning between Tk.12000 to Tk.14000, but this year it fell down to Tk.8000 to Tk.9000." However, the reason behind this large fall in income (of around one-third) was not clarified! Was it because the payment was on piece rate rather than on work day basis? Or was the number of working days curtailed this year? This was not made clear for the readers, who are not associated with the 'garment business' like the undersigned, who otherwise spent over half a century, working in public and private sector industries! Further, the price of eggs at Tk.45 for four was indeed a surprise. Here in Gulshan market, which we consider to be more expensive than other city markets, the price of eggs, from last Saturday increased to Tk.40 for four, whereas earlier it varied between Tk 36 to 38! Given these realities, one cannot but be sympathetic to the workers' demand for better wages. Either yesterday, or the day before, a garment factory owner's statement was published in your pages. He stated that he had unilaterally increased the wages of his workers, considering the high rise in food prices. Such owners are indeed forward looking and realistic and deserve respect and admiration. However, other owners may possibly be hooked to the popular saying: "The more you get, the more you want"!
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