Tannery Workers Union (TWU) has demanded a 50-bed specialized hospital for the treatment of workers at Savar tannery hub, as they are suffering severe health hazards from the impact of chemicals used in the industry.

The TWU leaders said this in a press briefing on labor compliance and a safe working environment in Savar tannery hub, held at press council auditorium in the capital on Tuesday.

They also demand the implementation of the ILO labor conventional Act along with the permission of trade union to protect the industry and its labor.

Speaking in the press conference, general secretary of TWU Abdul Maleque said the government is giving importance to leather industries, but the tannery workers are being deprived their minimum rights.

“After working 30 years in the tannery industries, labors were sacked from job without paying any financial compensation, although the tannery owners make huge profit due to the labor of these workers,” he said.

Read more: 7 tanneries shut down in Savar for polluting river

He demanded a 50-bed hospital in the Savar tannery hub for the treatment of tannery workers as the industry workers suffered different physical difficulties including skin disease and cancer.

Maleque also demanded the mandatory use of health safety guards during duty in and operation of machinery in the tannery industries.

There are 20000 workers who are directly involved in the Savar tannery industries, while around 2 lakh workers are engaged in this industry indirectly.

The tannery industries’ local value addition is around 84 percent, while this ratio in the garments sector is around 20 percent.

Read more: Tannery owners to begin rawhide procurement soon

Professor Dr. Belal Ahmed and Mohammad Nazrul Islam of solidarity center- Bangladesh, an international organization working on leather industry workers also spoke at the press conference.