No Eid festivities for 2,500 tea workers in Bangladesh’s Sylhet

Nazma Akhter, a widow who works at Kalagul Tea Garden in Sylhet, has been struggling to make ends meet for her family of six as she has not been paid for the past three months.

Nazma Akhter, a widow working at the Kalagul Tea Garden in Sylhet, has been struggling to support her family of six as she has not been paid for the past three months.

Nazma Akhter, a widow working at Kalagul Tea Garden in Sylhet, has been struggling to support her family of six as she has not been paid for the past three months.

The family’s sole breadwinner, Nazma has been forced to take loans and purchase essentials on credit. However, with the debt piling up and the shopkeepers no longer willing to extend her credit, she now finds herself in dire straits.

“I have not been paid for three months and also didn’t receive an Eid bonus. I couldn’t buy new clothes for my children. We are robbed of our smiles on this day,” Nazma said.

Abdul Qadir, another worker at the tea garden, echoed her.

At least 70 Muslim tea workers’ families and around 400 Hindu workers’ families in the garden have been enduring misery without receiving their wages or rations for three months. Eid bonuses were also not disbursed.

As a result, many families have been pushed to the brink, with no clear solution in sight.

“It is a daily struggle to ensure two handfuls of rice for all eight members of my family,” said Fatema Begum, 45, a worker at Kalagul Tea Garden and the sole wage-earner in the family.

“While children from neighbouring tea gardens are enjoying the Eid festivities, mine are at home, disheartened, while I am still wondering how to feed them for the day,” she added.

Raju Goala, organising secretary of the Bangladesh Tea Workers’ Union, said that over 2,500 workers from several tea gardens owned by Burjan Tea Company — including Burjan, Charagang, and Kalagul — are facing severe financial hardship.

“The workers are struggling to get food for their families. Burjan Tea Company owes them more than three months of unpaid salaries, rations, and Eid bonuses. While the workers are protesting, the company’s general manager is nowhere to be found,” he added.

So far, the company’s response has been less than reassuring. They have repeatedly stated that the wages would be paid soon, but months have passed, and the workers are still waiting to be paid,” Goala said.

Sohag Chhatri, a tea workers’ leader, said, “The company used to pay us weekly, but for the past 15 consecutive weeks, there has been no payment or rations. The company’s hospital has no medicine, and we still haven’t received our festival bonuses for this year or last.”

The workers have written letters to the deputy commissioner of Sylhet and the Divisional Labour Office, urging the authorities to intervene and ensure that the company pays their dues, but no action has been taken yet.

Sanjay Kanta Das, adviser to the Bangladesh Tea Workers’ Federation, called on the government to intervene and address the issue immediately, warning that the workers would have no choice but to take to the streets if the matter is not resolved soon.

When contacted, Md Kamruzzaman, manager of Burjan Tea Garden Company, said the company had applied for a bank loan to pay the overdue wages and rations.

“The tea garden has been operating at a loss and now relies on loans from the bank to continue operating. Once we receive the loan, the arrears will be settled,” he added.Mohammad Sher Mahbub Murad, deputy commissioner of Sylhet, said they have reached out to the company over the issue and hope that the company will pay the workers promptly once the loan is approved.