State Minister for Labor and Employment Nazrul Islam Chowdhury said that the Labor Act will be made worker-friendly and it will be passed in the next session of the Parliament i.e. the budget session itself.
He said this in response to questions from journalists at a press conference at the Secretariat of the Ministry of Labor and Employment on Tuesday (April 30).
The state minister said that the labor law will be made worker-friendly. The ILO made some additions to it. It is at their request that there is a slight delay in the passage of the Act. But we have no shortage of interest. Hopefully, it will be passed in the next session of the Parliament i.e. the budget session itself.
US representatives have met with you on labor laws. Besides, when asked about the extent to which the labor law is being obeyed, the state minister said, we held a tripartite meeting before last Eid. Appropriate action has been taken by identifying the problem there. This year, the salary and allowances have been given before Eid for the first time in the labor sector. Before this, roads were blocked, there were various disturbances. Earlier there was a hostile labor-owner relationship. Now we have discussed and solved it.
The state minister said that the workers have been given salary and bonus before the holiday. Incentives owed to the government have been given to the owners. Due to which workers have been paid in due time. That is why the workers celebrated Eid in a joyful atmosphere.
He said, if the law is not followed, we can file a case in the labor court. There are inspectors from our ministry to implement it. They inspect and take appropriate action. They are under our ministry. Therefore, there is a power to cancel the license if the labor law is not followed. However, it cannot be said that there are no exceptions in some cases. I want to assure you that in the last two months, I have managed my ministry properly. This ministry has been managed in a corruption-free and transparent manner.
In response to the question of how long the eight-hour working hours will be implemented, the state minister said that most of the foreign exchange comes from the ready-made garment sector. When they put workers overtime to fulfill foreign orders or expedite exports. For this they are paid. Workers are self-motivated and take on these extra responsibilities.
He said, it is a mutual matter, done on the basis of compromise. Again they happen in the informal sector. For example, more than eight hours of labor has to be given in the shop. We are working to resolve these issues.
In response to a question about trade unions, the state minister said that the provisions regarding the formation of trade unions have been relaxed a lot. We provide online and offline trade union registration. In that case, we have made arrangements to relax their barriers so that they can easily get trade union.
