United News of Bangladesh

Employees at the Bangladesh Secretariat will observe a two-hour work abstention on Monday demanding the repeal of the Public Service (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025. Md Nurul Islam, chairman of the Secretariat Officers and Employees Unity Forum, announced the fresh programme from a protest rally on the Secretariat premises on Sunday. The 2-hour work abstention will start at 11am. Earlier around 11:15am, employees began their demonstration from the ground floor of the Finance Ministry. They marched through different sections of the Secretariat chanting slogans against the ordinance. This demonstration marks the continuation of a series of protests staged by government employees against the ordinance which they claim would curtail job security and benefits for certain categories of staff. Tensions at secretariat as employees continue protests On June 19, secretariat employees staged a similar protest expressing concern over the ordinance, which they said was drafted without consulting stakeholders and could pave the way for arbitrary decisions on employment status and disciplinary action. The Unity Forum said that if their demands are not met, they will announce stronger protest programmes in the coming days. The draft of the controversial ordinance was approved at a meeting of the Advisory Council on May 22. It includes provisions allowing dismissal of government employees for four types of disciplinary offences without a formal departmental inquiry, requiring only a show-cause notice. The ordinance was promulgated on May 25, sparking widespread backlash among public servants. Government employees have condemned the ordinance as regressive and a ‘black law’. Govt employees vow to continue movement until ordinance fully revoked Since May 24, they have been staging protest marches, work abstentions, and sit-ins within the Secretariat. Memorandums have also been submitted to several advisers demanding its repeal.

Government employees have suspended their protests demanding the immediate repeal of the Public Service (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025 at the Secretariat. A meeting is scheduled to be held with the Law Adviser at the Secretariat today. The protest, led by Md Badiul Kabir, President of the Bangladesh Secretariat Officers and Employees Coordinated Council and its Secretary General Nizam Uddin Ahmed, began around 10:45am. The demonstrators started a march from in front of Building No. 6 at the Secretariat. At around 11am, another faction of the Coordinated Council—led by Md Nurul Islam and Mujahidul Islam—joined the demonstration. Chanting various slogans, including ‘Illegal black law must be repealed’, ‘We do not accept this law’, ‘Unite and resist—18 lakh employees’, and ‘No compromise, only struggle’, protesters demanded the withdrawal of the newly promulgated ordinance. Turmoil rocks public administration amid fresh wave of protests