At least 30 people were injured as garment factory workers clashed with police outside the Bangladeshi capital Monday during a strike to demand higher salaries, police said.
Police fired rubber bullets and teargas when the protesters damaged cars and factories in the Tongi, Ashilua and Gazipur industrial areas, police officer Abul Kalam Azad said.
The clashes lasted for at least an hour, he said, adding that the protesters threw stones at police and put barricades on a highway that connects the capital with northern districts.
The workers went on strike for the second day Monday, demanding a starting minimum monthly wage of least 100 dollars in the garment factories that produce clothing mostly for the Western clients.
They said the cost of living has risen sharply since a 38-dollar minimum salary was fixed in 2010.
Owners announced unscheduled holidays for nearly 100 garment factories in the industrial districts, fearing further agitation and violence, said Kabeer Hossain, an officer at Industrial Police unit.
The government started reviewing conditions for workers in the garment industry after more than 1,100 people were killed when a factory collapsed in April near Dhaka.
Factory owners have agreed to a 20-per-cent pay rise.
Bangladesh, the second-largest garment exporter after China, has been under pressure to improve safety standards at nearly 4,000
garment factories that employ more than 3.5 million workers, mostly women.
Sapa-dpa