The readymade garment factory workers of the TNZ Group in Gazipur called off the blockade on Monday evening as the labour ministry and the factory owners pledged to pay the first instalment of Tk 6 crore in wages on Sunday next.

Following a meeting with workers’ and factory owners’ representatives at Shrama Bhaban in Dhaka on Monday evening, the labour secretary AHM Shafiquzzaman announced that the remaining dues would be settled by November 30.

The funds will primarily be disbursed from the labour ministry’s Workers’ Welfare Fund, and the factory owner will repay the amount to the ministry after a specified period.

Public life came to a standstill during the three-day blockade on the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway, caused by workers from five garment factories of the TNZ Group in Gazipur. The blockade led to a 20-kilometre tailback on both sides of the highway.

The workers of the TNZ Group began blocking the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway at Mogorkhal in Gazipur city on Saturday morning, demanding the payment of overdue wages and allowances and the reopening of closed factories.

After 53 consecutive hours, the workers lifted their blockade at about 2:30pm on Monday, the third day of the protest, following an assurance of wages from government officials.

A group of workers, just two hours later, returned to the same spot and reiterated their demand for payment.

Public life in Gazipur came to a standstill due to the ongoing siege, resulting in a traffic jam stretching around 20 kilometres on both sides of the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway.

According to sources from the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, the authorities of 27 factories declared their units closed for Monday to prevent potential vandalism amid the ongoing labour unrest within the TNZ Group.

According to a report from the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments, wages for September and October remained unpaid, amounting to approximately Tk 15 crore across five factories in the group.

The payment date for the wages has been rescheduled four times, but has been missed on each occasion, it said.

DIFE report said that since October 27 workers have intermittently blocked the Dhaka-Mymensingh road, demanding guarantees regarding the payment of their wages and allowances.

The Gazipur office of the DIFE had held multiple meetings with the owners, workers, and labour leaders in an attempt to resolve the issues through a negotiation.

However, the non-payment of dues as per the owners’ agreement, along with the failure to pay regular wages and allowances, has led to widespread worker dissatisfaction, the DIFE report mentioned.

It also said that several cases have been filed in the Gazipur Labour Court under Sections 121 and 123 of the Bangladesh Labour Act 2006 for the non-payment of regular salaries and allowances in the five factories of TNZ group.