Going hungry: Garment workers in Bangladesh say wages barely cover needs
· World · Al Jazeera, The Hindu
Garment factory workers in Bangladesh are striking for a minimum wage of 30,000 taka ($241) to combat surging inflation and living costs. Protester Laili Begum, a sewing operator at Virtual Bottoms Limited in Dhaka, earns between 15,000 and 20,000 taka a month with overtime, which leaves her unable to afford basic education for her children or proper daily meals. Bangladesh employs approximately four million garment workers, half of them women, in an apparel export sector that accounts for over 80 percent of the nation's export earnings. The country's garment wages remain among the lowest globally compared to producers like Cambodia, Vietnam, and China. Police responded to the protests in the Ashulia industrial area on the outskirts of Dhaka by firing tear gas and stun grenades.
Why it matters
The protests disrupt supply chains for major global fashion brands including H&M, Zara, and Walmart while highlighting severe economic distress among millions of apparel workers in Bangladesh.
Read the original report — Al Jazeera
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