The government is trying to find jobs for 40,000 laid-off workers of Beximco Group in factories within the Bangladesh Export Processing Zone Authority (Bepza) and the Bangladesh Export Zones Authority (Beza), a senior labour ministry official said.

The group in December last year laid off more than 40,000 workers across its 16 textile and garment units, citing a decline in work orders from international clothing retailers and brands.

In addition to finding jobs for the laid-off workers, the government is also looking for foreign buyers for the textile and garment factories, said AHM Shafiquzzaman, secretary of the Ministry of Labour and Employment.

Finding jobs for the laid-off workers is a decision of the government's advisory council, the labour secretary said, adding that laid-off workers will receive partial salaries from Janata Bank until March this year.

Shafiquzzaman also said that an independent board has recently been formed by the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) to oversee the sale and operation of the group's factory units.

The independent BSEC board reported that the group's pharmaceuticals and ceramics divisions are performing well and are profitable.

These units will continue to operate while the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (Bida) looks for foreign buyers for the group's 16 textile and garment units, the labour secretary told The Daily Star over the phone.

Following the ouster of the Awami League government in early August last year, the conglomerate landed in hot water.

Its Vice-chairman Salman F Rahman, who is now behind bars, was an influential adviser to deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina.

Rahman is accused of weaponising his political influence for personal business gain.

After the fall of Awami League, a series of financial irregularities involving Rahman and his business empire came to light.

Recent Bangladesh Bank data showed that Beximco Group owed nearly Tk 50,000 crore in bank loans as of November 2024, with more than half of the amount becoming non-performing.

The amount of defaulted loans owed to the state-owned Janata Bank is more than Tk 23,500 crore, and the bank can sell the group's properties following legal procedures, said the labour secretary.

"We will follow the legal procedures in the sale of Beximco properties," Shafiquzzaman added.

He said that the advisory council would meet again on January 20 at the Secretariat to review the progress of the sale of Beximco textile and garment units.

Meanwhile, Osman Kaiser Chowdhury, director of the Beximco Group's finance and corporate affairs division, opposed the government move, saying, "How can another person or the government sell the companies of others?"

"When the government makes a final decision to sell the units, the group will seek legal recourse in court," he said.

He also said the group has sought legal remedy from the court challenging the appointment of directors to three Beximco units.

Recently, the government appointed nine directors to Beximco Pharma, seven directors to Beximco Ceramics, and nine directors to Beximco Limited, he said.

The group used to export $30 million worth of textile and garment items per month before the fall of the Awami League government last year, Chowdhury also said.

If the government allows the group to open letters of credit (LCs), Beximco can resume exporting textile and garment items, as the group had maintained strong relationships with international clothing retailers and brands, he claimed.

A senior Bida official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the process of selling or divesting units of any personal property by the government could be lengthy due to legal disputes.

Ashik Chowdhury, executive chairman of both the Bida and the Beza, said discussions are underway to rehabilitate the laid-off Beximco Group workers in factories in Beza and Bepza.

"Export-oriented garment factories have a demand for workers and it is expected that the laid-off workers can be rehabilitated in these factories, as the work orders previously delivered by the Beximco Group will likely remain within the country."

Regarding the sale of the Beximco Group's textile and garment units, Ashik Chowdhury also said that Bida, as the investment regulatory body, has been assisting the government in selling the units.

Bida is submitting customer proposals to the advisory council, as the body has been assigned to do so, he said.

However, the Bida executive director declined to comment on the number of proposals received from customers so far.

The apparel and textile units of the group are located on Dhaka's outskirts Gazipur.

On December 15 last year, Beximco issued notifications informing the officials, employees and workers that the factories would enforce layoffs from 16 December.

Regarding employee salaries during the 45-day layoff period, the notifications referenced the Labour Law, which stipulates half of the basic payment for workers and some other benefits.

The factories included Shinepukur Garments, Urban Fashions, Yellow Apparels, Prefix Fashions, RR Washing, Beximco Fashions, Bextex Garments, New Dacca Industries, Int'l Knitwear & Apparels, Esses Fashions, Escorp Apparels, Crescent Fashion and Design and Crescent Accessories Limited.

Beximco employs a total of 70,000 workers, making the layoff of over 40,000 workers equivalent to more than 57 percent of its workforce.