Bangladesh Speaking at a workshop on “Multi- Stakeholder Meeting on Fire Prevention in RMG Sector,” Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan urged readymade garment factory owners to provide a safe workplace for workers and stand besides fire victims. The workshop was organized by Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and Bangladesh National Council (BNC) of Textile, Garment and Leather Workers. (Fibre2Fashion)

Union Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said that the India-Bangladesh border markets will be inaugurated in June this year that would boost bilateral trade. (The Hindu)

Brazil As the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics are held in Brazil, hundreds of workers and activists met in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to launch the global Play Fair campaign to ensure that all the workers involved in the construction of facilities and manufacturing of event products work under decent conditions. (AFL-CIO)

Cambodia Prime Minister Hun Sen issued a circular on Thursday (April 28) banning workers from assembling on International Labor Day, May 1, but the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers’ Democratic Union says it will go ahead with its plan of gathering some 3,000 laborers in Phnom Penh where workers will bring a petition for better working rights and conditions. (VOA News)

China A fire at a clothing factory in southern Beijing killed at least 17 persons and injured 24 more before more than 200 firefighters extinguished the blaze early Monday (April 25). The four-story building in suburban Daxing district had been built by farmers on their own land and had not been reviewed by building inspectors. (New York Times)

China’s only legal trade union organization, a tool of Communist Party control long scorned by workers as a shill for big business, is shifting its way of thinking and learning to speak up for workers after experiencing the workers’ protests in the past year. (Washington Post)

Colombia Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos on Tuesday (April 26) announced plans to increase resources for the protection of union workers by 50% for 2012, in accordance with the labour rights focus of the U.S.-Colombia bilateral free trade agreement (FTA). (Colombia Reports)

Dominican Republic The country’s three major labor unions will not attend the National Wages Committee meeting on Friday, complaining that management’s attitude and its proposal of a 11.58% increase on the minimum wage haven’t changed.  The unions propose a 30% increase, or an average of RD$2,000 (USD $53) per month for the minimum wage. (Dominican Today)

Ethiopia Tata International Ltd, the global trading arm of Tata Group with business interests in leather, chemicals and engineering goods, is planning to set up tannery and leather goods manufacturing facilities in Ethiopia. The company, which currently has leather processing and manufacturing facilities in Madhya Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, intends to make Ethiopia its first processing and manufacturing hub outside India. (The Hindu)

Hong Kong Hong Kong based Crystal Group, one of Asia's largest garment manufacturers, is taking steps to improve the energy, water, waste, material usage, air quality and noise at its Yida denim factory to prove the industry doesn't have to be as polluting as many critics claim. (Fibre2Fashion)

India American sportswear maker Nike on Tuesday said it has extended its contract with BCCI for another five years to sponsor Indian cricket team's uniform. Nike’s earlier contract with the BCCI for supplying the team uniform for five years expired in December last year, which was extended till March this year in view of the cricket World Cup. (NDTV)

Indonesia According to a report by the International Textile Garment and Leather Workers' Federation (ITGLWF), factories in three countries – the Philippines, Indonesia and Sri Lanka – didn’t pay a living wage to their combined 100,000-strong workforce. Many of them didn't even pay the legal minimum wage. (Guardian)

Mexico Tens of thousands of members of independent unions, among them teachers and electrical workers, marched against the union-busting bill with weeks of protest. (Labor Notes)

Mexico posted its biggest monthly trade surplus in more than 15 years in March with an increase of 3.8 percent in exports. Roughly 80 percent of Mexican exports head across the northern border and strong consumer demand from the United States for manufactured goods has given the local economy a lift. (Reuters)

Pakistan DHL has planned to invest $9 million to expand it freight forwarding and supply chain operations, network and services across Pakistan with innovative models and technologies deployment. DHL is also committed to the GoGreen program which minimizes the impact of their actions on the environment by using resources in a responsible manner. (Daily Times)

Philippines The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) and Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) warned on Tuesday (April 26) that a wage hike would result to massive lay-offs and even shutdown of companies in the country. (ABS-CBN)

Sri Lanka The main opposition United National Party called on the government to come up with a package for the workers on this year’s May Day, without using the UN Panel report to gain political advantage on that day. (Daily Mirror)

Thailand According to the Fisheries Department, the European Union has stepped up random checks on the authenticity of certifications held by Thai fishing trawlers, wharf operators and marine products factories. The main purpose of this EU operation was to verify the legality of the fishery process in Thailand -- from marine catches through to exporting them as food products. (Bangkok Post)

Turkey Turkey’s Foreign Trade Minister Zafer Çağlayan has said the country’s volume of exports for the period beginning Jan. 1 and ending last Friday (April 22) was recorded at some $41 billion and added that the pre-global financial crisis level of $132 billion is expected to be exceeded by year-end, equaling an increase of more than 15 percent over a year ago. (Today’s Zaman)

Venezuela Venezuela's minimum wage will rise by more than 25%, President Hugo Chavez has announced.  Workers will get a 15% increase from 1 May, and then a 10% rise in September bringing the monthly salary to the equivalent of $360. (BBC News)

Vietnam The Vietnam General Confederation of Labor (VGCL) launched Workers Month 2011 and celebrated the 125th International Labor Day (May 1) at Bac Thang Long Industrial Zone in Hanoi on April 27. (Saigon Daily)

About 1,300 employees at the Taiwan-owned footwear factory (Stateway Vietnam Footwear) in northern Vietnam returned to work Wednesday (April 27) after the company agreed to increase their monthly salary. (M&G News)