Protests over wages rock Bangladesh apparel workshops

Roughly 1,500 workers for brands including Gap, H&M have been suspended, fired

At first, the police knocked. Then they tried to kick the door down.

Protests over low wages had erupted at dozens of garment factories in Bangladesh, one of the top suppliers of clothing for global brands like H&M and Gap, and the officers had come to question Jahangir Alam, president of a local trade union in Ashulia, a suburb of the capital, Dhaka. They told his wife he would be back within a few hours. That was a month ago. Instead, his wife said, Alam has sat in a jail cell so dark he could not see his own hands. She said they had spoken briefly when she finally tracked him down to a Dhaka court.

Alam is one of at least 14 labor activists and workers who have been detained since the unrest began in December, according to arrest records. The demonstrations disrupted work at factories that supply clothing to global fashion companies like Inditex of Spain, owner of the Zara brand, and PVH, which owns the Tommy Hilfiger brand. The police say the unrest has led to the suspension or firing of roughly 1,500 workers, many of whom took part in the protests.

The police have accused the activists of inciting vandalism and other crimes, and several factories have pressed charges against many of their workers.

But labor rights groups say the government is trying to scare workers into silence by detaining innocent people. They say the detentions, and the looming risk of more arrests, are the biggest setback for workers since the collapse of Rana Plaza, a building that housed garment factories, where more than 1,100 people died in 2013.

That tragedy, one of the worst industrial disasters in history, exposed major safety hazards at factories in Bangladesh, which churns out a steady stream of low-cost goods. And it prompted some of the world’s biggest brands to push for better conditions for the workers who make their clothes.

By some measures, conditions have improved. But the brands now say the arrests and firings could undermine the progress they have made.

SALAHUDDIN AHMED THE NEW YORK TIMES Garment workers on a lunch break this month in Bangladesh. At least 14 labor activists and workers have been detained since protests over low wages erupted at dozens of garment factories one of the top suppliers of clothing for global brands like H&M...