DHAKA: Bangladesh’s garment wage board agr­eed on Wednesday to raise minimum pay in the key export sector, but details remained scarce and it was unclear whether the deal would end five days of protests and clashes.

Tens of thousands of workers marched through industrial areas on Wedne­sday morning demanding hi­­­­g­­her wages, with some thr­­owing bricks, torching police vehicles and erecting barricades, as police fired tear gas to disperse crowds.

Protests eased in the afternoon after an agreement was announced, but there was no immediate indication that workers would return to factories and restart production. Many workers were still unsure what the announcement meant, union leader Kamrul Hasan of the Ekota Garments Sramik Federation said, adding that most “did not know” how the wage board worked and were asking on social media whether their pay had increased.

Mahmudul Hasan, Ban­gl­adesh Garment Manuf­acturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) president, said workers should go back to work. “The unrest should subside, as progress is evident now,” Hasan said.

Published in Dawn, November 5th, 2026