United News of Bangladesh

The interim government has not taken any decision to implement the proposed new pay scale for government employees although it approved the report of the latest Pay Commission, said Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Adviser Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan on Tuesday “The government has only received the Pay Commission’s report and has not taken any decision to enforce it,” he told reporters responding to a question whether announcing a pay scale at a time of mounting debt was necessary and whether it would create financial pressure on the next administration. The matter has been left for further scrutiny and for the next elected government to decide, said the adviser. “There seems to be some misunderstanding regarding the pay scale issue. For the last 10 to 13 years, government employees have been demanding the formation of a Pay Commission. Normally, a Pay Commission is constituted every five years. That process has now been completed and the commission has only submitted its report.” “The interim government has only around 15 days left in office, and we do not intend to take such a major policy decision at this stage,” he added. To examine the recommendations, the government has formed a review committee, headed by the Cabinet Secretary following the established practice. The committee will assess the feasibility of the proposals, including their fiscal impact. Fouzul Kabir Khan said the report itself leaves room for flexibility. “It has been clearly stated that the next government will be free to change, modify or reject any decision. The incoming administration will have full authority to act as it sees fit,” he said. Responding to questions on whether inflation was considered while preparing the pay structure, the adviser said the commission, led by Zakir Ahmed Khan, was an independent body that took all relevant macroeconomic indicators into account. “All issues, including inflation, were duly considered by the commission,” he said. However, he acknowledged concerns about the potential financial burden if the recommendations were implemented in full and at once. “That is a valid question. But from experience, Pay Commission recommendations are never implemented all at once. They are usually enforced in phases,” he said. He added that the review committee would examine issues such as budgetary capacity, financing sources and phased implementation, if the recommendations are eventually approved. When asked whether the move could create pressure on the next government, Fouzul Kabirrejected the notion, saying the interim administration is working in the interest of future governments as well. Ensure power in all polling stations within a week: Energy Adviser “We are a limited-time government, but that does not mean we should stop planning for the future,” he said, citing initiatives such as the Power and Energy Sector Master Plan and a multimodal transport sector plan, which may not be implemented by the current administration but would benefit the next one. “The Pay Commission was formed with the same objective—to ensure that the next government does not face unrest or administrative paralysis,” he said. He urged the media to report the pay scale issue accurately as  no gazette notification has been issued yet and  implementation decision has not been taken yet.

Bangladesh Government employees who are expecting a new pay scale in the upcoming budget of fiscal year 2023-24, have to be satisfied with a maximum 20 percent dearness allowance (DA). Highest importance has been given to the stability of the macro economy of the country in the next budget. The prime minister will finalize the budget proposal in a meeting to be held in the second week of May, finance ministry sources said. The ministry, as per the direction of the prime minister, has set a total budget of Tk 759,955 crore for FY 2023-24. Highest allocations have been kept for interest payment and subsidy expenditure. A proposal for a special allowance has been prepared, taking into account the price hike of essentials due to the ongoing inflation, sources said. Read More: Next budget will make businesses and common people happy: Finance Minister Officials directly involved in budget formulation have confirmed that there will be no new pay scale. The upcoming election year budget is the last budget of the current government. In the new budget, there is no allocation for the nationalization of schools and colleges or the inclusion of MPOs, said officials of the finance department. Officials of the finance ministry said that government employees had been expecting a new pay scale in the upcoming budget for a long time, but the prime minister rejected it. In the current fiscal year 2022-23, the government has reduced expenditure in various sectors. Over Tk 1,000 crore has been saved from salaries and allowances (foreign travel) of government employees. Read More: BGMEA donates part of money budgeted for iftar programme to old-age home The total allocation for salaries and allowances in the revised budget for the financial year 2022-23 was Tk 73,173 crore. However, the finance department has estimated an allocation of Tk 77,000 crore for salaries and allowances in the upcoming fiscal year. The government usually announces new pay scale every five years. After implementing the seventh pay scale in 2009, the government implemented a new pay scale in 2015 by increasing the salary by almost 100 percent. Since then, government employees are getting a 5 percent increment every year in July. Eight years have passed since then and different organizations of government employees are demanding a new pay scale, citing the price hike of goods, including food, due to the Ukraine-Russia war. According to official documents, in the new budget, subsidy expenses would take up Tk 100,134 crore. The total revenue collection target would be Tk 500,000 crore, which is 15 percent more than that of this fiscal year. Read more: CPD bats for special increment for inflation-hit public/private employees in next national budget Of the sum, the National Board of Revenue (NBR) has been tasked with fetching Tk 430,000 crore, which is 16.2 percent more than this year. Bangladesh's Annual Development Program (ADP) has been set at Tk 263,000 crore while expected GDP growth is 7.5 percent. The estimated inflation has been set at 6 percent that was 5.6 percent in the budget of 2022-23.

The government has no plan to announce new pay scale or dearness allowance for the government employees right now, Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal said in Parliament on Tuesday. The minister said this in reply to a tabled question from Gonoforum MP Mokabbir Khan. Read more: Primary school headmasters to get grade 10 pay scale: SC The finance minister said that the government issued the National Pay Scale Order in 2015, which is still in force. In the past, government employees were given the benefit of salary increment every year as per the pay scale order.  But, due to the provision of increase in percentage of the basic pay in the National Pay Scale 2015, the annual salary of the government employee increase at a fixed rate up to a certain limit, which has been playing a positive role in improving the standard of living of the government employees at all levels, the minister said.  “Amid the post-Covid global recession, inflation has increased around the globe  with hike in commodity prices, which has also affected Bangladesh.The government has taken various steps to control inflation and normalize the market situation.” Read more: Govt employees demand amending 8th pay scale The finance minister said that in the current situation, the government has launched a programme to provide daily essentials through family cards at a lower price. The government is trying to take practical steps to increase the financial capacity of  people. “In this situation, there is no plan to announce new pay scale or dearness allowance for the government employees at this moment,” Kamal said.