Upon pay assurance, workers lift highway blockade after 52 hours

Workers of Birds Group, a textile maker in Bangladesh, withdrew their blockade at the Baipail intersection of the Nabinagar-Chandra highway in Dhaka's Ashulia yesterday after being assured that all their arrears will soon be paid.

At around 9:30am last Monday, workers of Birds Group blocked the highway to demand the payment of their salaries and ancillary dues for the three months leading up to the company's closure in late August.

Since then, hundreds of vehicles on the route have been stuck in gridlock, causing great suffering among drivers and passengers, according to our Savar correspondent.

The workers finally withdrew the blockade at around 1:00pm yesterday after a joint force comprising army personnel, the police and other law enforcing agencies arrested the company's owner and assured that their arrears will be paid as soon as possible.

But even after ending the blockade, the workers took position in front of the Birds Group factory and informed that they would remain there until all the dues are cleared.

During a visit to the area at around 11:30am yesterday, it was seen that hundreds of cargo trucks were idling along the highway connecting Dhaka with western and north-western districts.

The stranded truck drivers told The Daily Star that they had been stuck in place for the past three days due to the workers' blockade.

They also expressed frustration at the interim government and lawmen for not addressing the situation.

But later at around noon, a senior army officer held a discussion with the workers.

"He [the army officer] told us that thousands of people are suffering for our blockade. He then asked us to leave the road as they have already arrested the owner and will arrange our payments very soon," a worker said.

Following the hour-long discussion, law enforcers reopened the road despite facing obstruction from some workers.

However, the army officer did not reveal the name of the person they have arrested.

Shahinur Kabir, an additional superintendent of Police in the Savar circle, also told The Daily Star that the workers will promptly receive their due payments.

Responding to a question regarding the owner's arrest, he said they have not yet received any information to this end.

In a notice on August 27, the authorities of Birds Group said they have had no work at their factory for some time due to the economic effects of the Russia-Ukraine war and global recession.

Still, the company tried to continue operations despite incurring losses.

However, this proved to be all for naught as all concerns of Birds Group -- RNR Fashions Ltd, Bird's Garments Ltd, Bird's Fedrex Ltd and Bird's A&Z Ltd -- were eventually shuttered on August 28.

After announcing the closure of Birds Group's unit in Baipail, the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) called a meeting with its owners and workers at the Directorate of Inspection of Factories and Institutions.

At the meeting, it was decided that the group would pay all the workers' dues by last Monday. But as this did not come to fruition, the workers began protesting.

Meanwhile, 33 other factories, including one in Ashulia and 26 in Gazipur and its adjacent industrial areas, were closed yesterday because of the ongoing labour unrest, according to BGMEA data.

Abdullah Hil Rakib, acting president of the BGMEA, said the country's garments industry is now gradually returning to normalcy as most factories resumed operations following nearly a month of unrest.

He also informed that while a few factories in the industrial areas of Gazipur and Kathgar were vandalised even yesterday, army personnel were able to bring the situation under control.