DHAKA (AFP) - Hundreds of garment factories across Bangladesh were closed on Monday after hundreds of thousands of workers staged the largest protest in years to demand a rise in monthly wages.
The world’s second-largest exporter after China, the Bangladeshi ready-made garment industry is the backbone of its modern economy, accounting for 80 percent of export earnings, which reach $40 billion per fiscal year. 
The sector is the largest formal industrial employer in the country, with around 4 million people working at 3,500 factories registered across major industrial hubs including Dhaka, Gazipur, Narayanganj, Chattogram, and Savar.
Millions more jobs are created in the ecosystem generated by the RMG industry, including in transport, packaging, and supply chains.
But despite contributing about 10 percent to gross domestic product, workers at garment factories have the statutory minimum wage of 12,500 taka ($100) per month — one of the lowest among garment-exporting countries.
As the cost of living has risen significantly since the wage was set in 2023, especially in the wake of a fuel crisis and rising inflation linked to the U.S. war on Iran, unions are demanding an increase to 30,000 taka.
Following a series of smaller protests that began in mid-October, nearly 1 million workers have been blocking major streets in Dhaka and Gazipur since Sunday, clashing with police, and forcing hundreds of factories to temporarily shut down, according to the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association.
“For the second consecutive day, garment workers took to the streets in different parts of Dhaka, Gazipur and Savar, resulting in the closure of factory operations at around 700–800 factories,” BGMEA director Faisal Samad told media.