Bangladesh Agrees to Raise Minimum Wage for Garment Workers After Protests

Bangladesh’s newly formed wage board said on Wednesday that it would raise the minimum wage for garment workers by the end of the year.The decision followed protests this week that shut down hundreds of factories, led to sporadic violence and threatened to disrupt production for some of the world’s top fashion brands.The board, which was created this week in response to protests by garment workers demanding higher pay, did not say how large the increase would be.

The announcement brought an end to several days of unrest in several cities in Bangladesh, whose economy is heavily dependent on its status as the world’s department store.As in much of the rest of the world, workers in Bangladesh, the second-largest exporter of clothing behind China, are struggling as the rising cost of everyday goods and services eats up more of their income.The minimum salary in Bangladesh’s garment industry is equivalent to roughly $100 a month.The protesting workers have asked for a raise to more than $242 a month, a 140 percent increase, which factory owners have said is unfeasible.“The current minimum salary is inadequate.

It cannot cover one person’s monthly living cost,” Mohammad Helal, a garment worker who protested in the city of Ashulia, north of the capital, Dhaka, said in an interview.Sarcastically, Mr.

Helal, 26, offered the government an alternative to a wage increase: It could start paying for electricity, gas and rent costs.Then, he said, “We will not demand the salary increase.”...