Minimum Wage Protests News Today

The tragic reality is that we've utterly failed to incorporate young workers into our economic and political discourse.

If this is the situation with labour rights in the country, we should fear not only the repercussions of the US memorandum, but also potential actions of the European Union.

M Touhid Hossain, former foreign secretary of Bangladesh, discusses the implications and significance of the recent US labour rights policy with The Daily Star.

Unless a holistic approach is taken, the sector will continue to fall short of international standards.

On November 16, US Secretary of State Antony J Blinken, at the rollout of the Presidential Memorandum on "Advancing Worker Empowerment, Rights, and High Labor Standards Globally,” stated that the United States would work to hold accountable those who threaten, intimidate and attack union leaders, labour rights defenders and labour organisations.

The Bangladeshi garment manufacturers took the decision to close 150 factories "indefinitely" on Saturday. This move comes in the wake of blanket charges being issued for 11,000 workers by the police in connection with recent violent protests advocating for a higher minimum wage.

To the outrage of the workers and trade unions who have been demanding a minimum wage of Tk 23,000-25,000, the wage board for the garment sector has announced a pitiful amount—Tk 12,500—as the monthly wage.

Black workers saw their median net worth grow by 174% from 2013 to 2019 in states that raised their minimum wages.

"Workers aren't going to come back for anything less than a guarantee of a permanent wage increase," said Saru Jayaraman, One Fair Wage's president.