Bangladeshi garment factories have temporarily closed their doors recently due to violent protests by disgruntled factory workers. All 250 garment factories in one of the country's main economic zones, Ashulia near Dhaka, have closed indefinitely.
Factories that supply Walmart, H&M, Zara, and Carrefour were among those shut down.
The protests began on Saturday. On Monday, workers walked out of the factories to protest in Ashulia. Police responded by firing rubber bullets and tear gas at the workers, who responded by throwing stones at the police. Factory closures were announced for Tuesday due to the violence. This sparked riots, thousands of factory workers took to the streets. Workers burned tires, smashed cars, and set trucks on fire. Around 200 garment factories have been vandalized.
At least 30 people have been reported as injured lately.
Garment workers in Bangladesh make only $25 American dollars each month, minimum wage, and they are demanding that be increased by three times the amount. Bangladeshi garment workers are among the lowest paid in the world. Garments are Bangladesh's biggest export.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
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1 comments:
Thanks for re-posting the story. The workers in Bangladesh are clearly fed up with exploitation. Hopefully, actions like this will trigger some kind of consciousness amongst people.
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