18 employees of Grameen Telecom files case against Dr. Yunus

Eighteen employees of Grameen Telecom filed a case against several officials of the company including Chairman of Grameen Telecom Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus to get 5 percent dividend. The case was filed in Dhaka labor court last Sunday.

After the hearing on Monday, the court ordered to serve summons. It has been asked to respond to this summons by October 16.

It is said in the complaint that the employees of Grameen Telecom are permanent workers of the company. They were not given 5 percent of their profits as per labor laws. Court officials said that a case has been filed regarding the claim of profit owed to the workers. After that, notice will be given to all accused including Dr. Yunus. After the defendants respond to the notice, a date of hearing will be fixed.

18 workers of Grameen Telecom filed 18 different cases as plaintiffs in the Third Labor Court of Dhaka due to not paying workers‍‍` dues. Court bench assistant Md. Nuruzzaman confirmed the case.

Court Chairman (District and Sessions Judge) Begum Sheikh Marina Sultana took the cases and ordered Yunus to appear in the court  or answer through a lawyer on October 15 and 16. 

Dr. Yunus‍‍`s lawyer, Barrister Abdullah Al Mamun, said, "I have heard that some workers have filed a case. However, it is not known exactly how many cases have been filed. It can be said after getting the court summons."

According to the court sources, the plaintiffs filed these cases because of the violation of Section 213 of the Labor Act 2006 due to non-payment of a total of 21 crore 41 lakh 17 thousand 163 taka. 17 former and one current employee of Grameen Telecom are plaintiffs in these cases.

Earlier, on September 9, 2021, Directorate of Factories and Institutions of Dhaka filed a case against four people including Dr. Muhammad Yunus. Arifuzzaman, labor inspector of the Directorate of Factories and Institutions, filed this case in the Third Labor Court of Dhaka. The case is still pending.