S Alam shuts 11 Chattogram factories, around 6,000 workers lose jobs

Highlights:

• Company cites raw material shortages, financial constraints
• Employees to receive dues and gratuity by 6 August
• Power plant continues operating despite wider shutdown

Eleven factories owned by S Alam Group in Chattogram have shut down, leaving around 6,000 workers without jobs as the conglomerate winds down several manufacturing units amid prolonged raw material shortages and financial constraints.

According to workers, the closures took effect yesterday (30 July), with the company beginning to settle the dues of affected employees.

Those still on the payroll have been informed that all outstanding payments, including legal entitlements, will be cleared by 6 August.

Engeineer Hashmat Ali, an employee of S Alam Refined Sugar Industries Ltd, who has worked with the group for 27 years and currently serves as a shift in-charge, told The Business Standard that the shutdown was not sudden but the culmination of nearly two years of operational difficulties.

"The 11 factories in Karnaphuli upazila area have been struggling since August 2024 after the company's movable and immovable assets and bank accounts came under restrictions. We continued operating using whatever raw materials remained in our warehouses. As those stocks have been exhausted all the 11 factories have been shut on Thursday," he said.

According to Hashmat, the group continued paying wages for more than a year despite limited or no production at several factories.

"About 100 to 150 employees were released a few months ago after receiving their dues. Depending on their years of service, some received Tk7 lakh, some Tk15 lakh, while others got as much as Tk17 lakh to Tk20 lakh in gratuity and other benefits," he said.

He added that the remaining workers would also receive all outstanding dues, including gratuity, by 6 August.

"The company cannot continue paying salaries without production. For nearly two years it has been paying workers while many factories remained idle," he said, adding that the group's monthly wage bill stood at around Tk30 crore.

Workers said the closed units include S Alam Refined Sugar Industries Ltd, S Alam Cement, S Alam Oil, S Alam Vegetable Oil, S Alam Bag Factory, a feed mill and several other industrial facilities.

However, the group's power plant remains operational.

According to employees, the affected factories are located in the Karnaphuli industrial area.

Workers expressed hope that production could resume if the government created an opportunity for the company to restart operations.

Officials of S Alam Group could not immediately be reached for comment.

The shutdown represents one of the largest industrial closures in Chattogram in recent years, raising concerns over the future of the group's manufacturing operations and the livelihoods of thousands of affected workers.