Staff Reporter: A ‘Workers’ Manifesto’ was formally handed over to the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) with a call to prioritize the rights, dignity and social protection of working people in the party’s upcoming national election manifesto.
The manifesto was handed over on Tuesday at the BNP’s Gulshan office to the party’s Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir by Nazrul Islam Khan, Convener of the National Advocacy Alliance for Workers’ Rights and Secretary General of the Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS).
Titled “Workers’ Manifesto for Ensuring Social Justice through Dignity, Rights and Protection of Workers,” the document contains 15 key recommendations reflecting the expectations of working people ahead of the 2026 national parliamentary election. Through this handover, the National Advocacy Alliance for Workers’ Rights officially launched its initiative to present the Workers’ Manifesto to political parties. The manifesto will be shared sequentially with other political parties and civil society stakeholders participating in the upcoming election.
Senior Joint Convener of the Alliance, Mesbahuddin Ahmed, and Member Secretary and Executive Director of LILS, Syed Sultan Uddin Ahmed, were present at the event, along with leaders of national trade union federations and labour rights organisations affiliated with the Workers’ Safety Forum (SNF).
During the programme, labour leaders urged that the recommendations outlined in the Workers’ Manifesto—covering fair wages, safe working conditions, freedom of association and social security—be incorporated into the BNP’s election manifesto for the 2026 parliamentary polls.
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir welcomed the initiative and appreciated the preparation of the Workers’ Manifesto. He assured the labour leaders that the recommendations would be reviewed carefully and considered for inclusion in the party’s election manifesto. He also emphasized the importance of workers’ unity and organization to ensure the protection of labour rights.
The programme was also attended by BNP-affiliated Labour Party President Anwar Hossain; Joint Secretary of Bangladesh Trade Union Centre, Abul Kalam Azad; General Secretary of National Labour Alliance, Badal Khan; General Secretary of Bangladesh Labour Federation, AAM Foyez Hossain; President of Socialist Workers’ Front, Rajekuzzaman Ratan, along with leaders of various labour federations, trade unions and labour rights organisations.
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