DHAKA, BANGLADESH - A garment worker was shot and killed Saturday as thousands of factory employees protesting wage cuts clashed with law enforcement officers near the Bangaldeshi capital, police said.

Local police officer Akhter-Uz-Zaman said more than 7,000 garment workers had gathered in Ashulia, 30 kilometres outside Dhaka, to protest cuts to their salaries and unpaid wages.

"One person died and several were injured, we are unsure how many right now, after the workers clashed with armed para-police who were trying to bring the situation under control," he said.

"The workers tried to storm the factory and para-police fired shots. One worker was killed as a result," he said.

Inexpensive clothing accounts for 80 percent of Bangladesh's exports, which are vital to the economy.

Factories in the South Asian nation have been hit hard by the global economic crisis with several reportedly cutting wages to compete for orders with other garment producing countries, such as Vietnam, China and India.

Forty percent of Bangladesh's industrial workforce is in the garment sector