Workers end highway blockade after meeting at ministry

Workers from TNZ Group in Gazipur ended their highway blockade late Monday night after being assured that their outstanding salaries would be paid by next Sunday. 

Traffic resumed on the highway around 10:15 PM after the workers left.

The workers, who had been protesting on the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway, were promised that one month's overdue salary would be paid by Sunday (November 17), and the remaining salary payments would be cleared by (November 28).

Gazipur Industrial Police Additional Superintendent Mosharraf Hossain confirmed the news, saying, "Workers accepted this agreement and ended their blockade, allowing traffic flow to resume."

TNZ Apparel, located at Mogorkhal area in Gazipur, comprises six factories employing approximately 3,000 workers. Workers had not received their salaries for three months, despite multiple prior protests. Although authorities, including the Industrial Police, had previously promised salary payments, the commitments were not fulfilled, leading to the workers' continuous protests. On Saturday morning, workers began blocking the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway in demand for their salaries.

After a 52-hour blockade, workers briefly suspended their protest on Monday afternoon, only to resume it two hours later at Maleker Bari. Following assurances from the Ministry of Labor, they finally withdrew their protest later that night.