Workers block road demanding Eid bonuses at Ctg EPZ

Around 1,800 workers from a factory at the Chattogram Export Processing Zone (EPZ) staged a protest and blocked a road today (9 April), demanding their Eid bonuses.

The workers gathered at the EPZ intersection around 10am and blocked the road, halting traffic. However, traffic resumed around 10:40am after police removed them from the street, said Mahmudul Hasan, assistant commissioner of the Chattogram Metropolitan Police's Bondor Zone.

He told TBS, "About 1,800 workers are employed at Modesty, a sister concern of JNF Corporation. The factory authorities had said they would pay the Eid bonuses on 17 April. However, the workers rejected the plan and began protesting inside the factory. At one point, they moved to the EPZ intersection and blocked the Airport Road."

Workers are protesting missed pay and Eid bonuses at the Chattogram Export Processing Zone (EPZ). Photo Collected

Hasan said, "The workers are demanding that their Eid bonuses and March salaries be paid today. We have temporarily cleared them from the road. We are now trying to resolve the issue through discussions with the factory authorities."

In response to a question, he said that while traffic has been restored for now, it is uncertain how long the situation will remain normal.

Sources say worker unrest has been flaring up at various factories in the Chattogram EPZ since last Saturday. Almost every day, workers from different factories have blocked roads, causing severe suffering for commuters in the area.