RAK Ceramic workers blocked the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway's Sreepur area for four and a half hours today, demanding payment of salaries with the agreed-upon increments.

The workers of RAK Ceramics obstructed vehicles in the Jaina-Nayanpur area of Sreepur, leading to a complete shutdown of traffic on the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway since 7:00am.

Around 11:30am, they ended the protest and went back to the factory, said Officer-in-Charge of Mawna Highway Police Station Golam Mahbub Morshed.

"Members of industrial police, highway police, army talked to the protesters and asked them to leave. We assured the workers that they would soon have the opportunity to discuss their demands with the factory authorities," the OC said.

The workers earlier said that despite an annual increment being announced in January, the factory has continued to pay them according to the old salary scale without implementing the new increments. They are now demanding immediate adjustment in the salaries.

Gazipur Industrial Police Inspector Rahyan Mia informed The Daily Star at 9:30am that traffic flow on the highway was not normal.

According to the police, hundreds of workers from the RAK Ceramic Factory began their protest in the morning in the Nayanpur area of Sreepur, demanding the unpaid increment from January to August.

This caused long traffic jams on both sides of the highway.

Attempts to contact the owner and manager of RAK Ceramics for comment were unsuccessful.