Jute, Yarn, and Textile Mills Workers-Employees Action Council leaders called on the Bangladesh government to reopen 25 state-owned jute mills as soon as possible on Wednesday.
During the Covid crisis, the government closed the jute mills on July 2, 2020, laying off nearly 50,000 jute mill workers.
At a press conference held at Dhaka Reporters’ Unity, the action council’s leader and Trade Union Centre head Shahidullah Chowdhury stated that the government had shuttered the jute mills for no reason.
He slammed the government’s intention to restore the shuttered jute mills through a public-private partnership or transfer them over to the private sector.
Making the mills, according to the leader, would not be difficult if the machines and marketing policies were adequately improved.
As part of their missions to follow the World Bank’s agenda, the BNP and Awami League governments liquidated Adamjee Jute Mills and all public sector jute mills, according to Shahidullah.
Quamrul Ahsan, joint convener of the Jute, Yarn, and Textile Mills Workers-Employees Action Council, read out a written speech at the news conference, in which he called on the government to refund all overdue salaries and arrears.
At the press conference, Labour leaders Aslam Khan, Ruhin Hossain Prince, Kishore Roy, Sahida Parveen Shikha, and Abdur Gofran were also present.
Image source: Dhaka Tribune
