The government on Tuesday directed all factory owners to clear workers’ wages for February within the first seven working days of March and to pay festival allowances by March12, ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr.

It also advised factory authorities to disburse half of March wages in advance, subject to discussions between workers and management.

Decisions on Eid holidays should likewise be finalised through consultation at the factory level.

The directives were issued at the 94th meeting of the Tripartite Consultative Committee (TCC) and the 24th TCC on the ready-made garment (RMG) sector, held at the CIRDAP International Conference Centre in Dhaka.

Labour and Employment Minister Ariful Hoque Chowdhury announced the decisions following the meeting.

Speaking as special guest, Commerce Minister Khandker Abdul Muktaadir said a significant portion of Bangladesh’s workforce remained in the informal sector.

Although many workers in the RMG industry are employed within the formal economy, the overall labour force is still largely informal, he noted.

To place the country on a sustainable and balanced footing, all sectors must gradually be brought under formal structures, the minister said.

Without formalisation, it would be difficult to ensure compliance with international standards or guarantee workers their full entitlements.

The meeting, chaired by the labour minister, was attended by State Minister for Labour Md Nurul Haque, the Prime Minister’s adviser Mahdi Amin, Bangladesh Employers’ Federation president Fazle Ehsan Shamim, and TCC Vice-President Md Anwar Hossain, among others.