26 September 2018 Bangladeshi Government Sets Outrageously Low Minimum Wage of €80 The NGWF trade union is calling for a minimum wage of EUR 160. Photo: © NGWFBonn. The Bangladeshi government has decided to raise the minimum wage from 5,300 Taka (€54) to 8,000 Taka (€80) as of December 2018. This is far from enough just to absorb the increased costs of recent years, let alone to achieve a real wage increase. Wages in Bangladesh's clothing industry are still the lowest in the world. The unions demanded 16,000 Taka (160,-€). There has been no wage increase for five years, although the 2013 legislative amendment provides for the basic wage component to be increased by 5% each year. In Bangladesh, the wage consists of a basic wage and supplements (for housing, transport, etc.). Now the basic wage has been raised only slightly, but the increases have been stronger. This has an impact on the payment of overtime, which is based on the basic wage. In fact, employees do not receive a doubling of their wages in the event of overtime. On July 6, 2018, the Representatives of business and NGOs in the Steering Committee of the Textile Alliance jointly wrote a letter to the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, in which they call on the government to increase wages substantially and also point out that the demands of the trade unions must be respected. Trade unions in Bangladesh are calling for: Raising the minimum wage Determination of the new minimum wage for all wage groups, not only the helpers The basic wage must be 70 percent of the gross wage, not 51 percent as now planned Annual wage increase of 10 percent Now that the wage increase has been so low, FEMNET and the Clean Clothes Campaign are calling on all companies that source goods from Bangladesh to speak out publicly in support of the unions' demand for a minimum wage of 16,000 Taka. News on the same topic: 27.07.2018: FEMNET and the Clean Clothes Campaign condemn employers' proposal on minimum wage for workers in Bangladesh and call on companies to act
