Garment workers in Bangladesh's Gazipur blocked the Dhaka-Tangail highway and set a police box in Konabari ablaze on Sunday, 1 November, as protests over a minimum monthly wage of Tk 30,000 intensified across key industrial zones. Five platoons of the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) were deployed to contain the unrest, according to local media reports.

How the Protests Unfolded

Workers began blocking the Dhaka-Tangail highway at 9:30 am, bringing traffic to a complete standstill. Protesters took positions at multiple points along the route, including Mouchak, Chandra Polli Bidyut, Safipur Bazar, and Telichala in Kaliakair upazila. Workers from numerous factories joined the demonstration, forcing the suspension of operations across several units.

Iftekhar Hossain, officer-in-charge of Konabari police station, confirmed that protesters set fire to a police box on the highway in the Konabari area. Shahidul Islam, officer-in-charge of Kaliakair police station, said traffic disruption persisted as workers continued to hold their positions, according to reports from the Dhaka Tribune.

Factory Closures and Wider Impact

The unrest extended beyond Gazipur. Over 50 garment factories in Ashulia announced a holiday on Sunday following similar worker protests demanding the Tk 30,000 minimum monthly wage, an end to blacklisting, and other benefits, according to industrial police cited by The Daily Star. Workers from several factories also gathered on the Abdullahpur-Baipail road in the Narsinghpur area to press their demands.

Notably, the protests had begun a day earlier. On Saturday, workers from various garment factories staged demonstrations in Ashulia, with at least 11 factories announcing closures in Kathgara and surrounding areas, the Dhaka Tribune reported.

Clashes and Injuries

Ashulia Industrial Police-1 Superintendent Mohammad Mominul Islam Bhuiyan said one police personnel was injured after being struck by bricks and stones hurled by protesters. Clashes broke out between workers and police as demonstrators also threw projectiles at nearby factory premises. An official from a garment factory in the Kathgara Amtala area, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the majority of factories in the zone had declared holidays.

Context and What's at Stake

Bangladesh's garment industry is the country's largest export earner and a critical supplier to global fashion brands. Recurring wage protests reflect a longstanding tension between factory owners — many of whom cite tight margins amid global buyer pressure — and workers who argue that existing pay scales have failed to keep pace with inflation. This is not the first large-scale shutdown in these industrial corridors; Ashulia and Gazipur have been flashpoints in previous wage cycles as well. The scale of Sunday's closures and the deployment of BGB forces signals that authorities view the situation as requiring urgent containment.