Most BGMEA factories clear Feb salaries, Eid bonuses

Almost all member factories of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) have paid February salaries and Eid bonuses, President of the trade body Mahmud Hasan Khan said yesterday.

At a press briefing in the capital, he said, “99.91 percent of factories have completed February salary payments, while two factories are still in the process of paying workers. No BGMEA-listed factory has any pending issues regarding February salaries.”

“Similarly, 99.81 percent of factories have paid Eid bonuses, with four factories still disbursing payments. Moreover, 64.03 percent of factories have paid partial March salaries, even though this is not legally required,” he added.

The association now has nearly 2,400 member factories.

“The Eid holiday started on March 17. Half of the factories announced their holidays on the first day, while the rest are expected to announce theirs by today or tomorrow (March 18 or 19),” he said.

Earlier, BB released Tk 2,500 crore from the export receipts fund, and the government provided Tk 1,500 crore in bank loans to factory owners to pay garment workers ahead of the Eid holidays.

The BGMEA president said many factories took advantage of the short-term government loans, while others did not need them as they could pay workers on their own.

A senior BGMEA official added that factory owners must repay these loans to the banks within one year.

Nearly four million garment workers are scheduled to return to work on March 28 after celebrating Eid-ul-Fitr.5