Pay scale gets some changes

Public servants will be entitled to two automatic grade raises during their service in place of selection grade and time scale they used to enjoy.   

University teachers, however, will continue to get the facility of time scale and selection grade in a different form, finance ministry officials said yesterday.

Meanwhile, Finance Minister AMA Muhith said the government issued a gazette on the new pay scale yesterday.

Talking to reporters at his secretariat office last night, the minister said the government has met most of the demands of university teachers, and hoped they would not have any grievances now.

Finance Secretary Mahbub Ahmed told The Daily Star that all public employees, who are entitled to get promotion, would get the upgrade: the first one after 10 years in service and the second one after another six years.

In September, the cabinet approved a proposal for replacing time scale and selection grade with annual increment of 3.75 percent to 5 percent.

As per the existing system, if a public servant does not get promotion in due time he is entitled to get time scale and selection grade.

Cabinet Secretary Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan said in September that time scale is discriminatory. Some get it while the others are deprived of it.

He also said selection grade is more discriminatory.

The withdrawal of time scale and selection grade had triggered widespread protests from public employees, including teachers.

According to the new pay scale, if a public employee holds the same post for 10 years, he will automatically get salaries of the upper grade from the 11th year.

After serving for another six years in the same post, the employees will get salaries of the next grade. 

This facility, however, will not be applicable to employees of the fourth grade and above.  

A finance ministry official said the ministry would settle the issue of time scale and selection grade facility for university teachers upon discussions with the University Grants Commission. 

National professors will get salaries equal to that of a senior secretary, the official said.

Government staffs will get this month's salaries in January as per the new pay scale. They will also be given arrears for five months from July this year in two instalments.

The employees will receive the arrears for July and August with the salaries for January and that for September, October and November with the salaries for February. Around Tk 3,500 crore will be needed for this, said the official.

According to the new pay scale, BCS cadres will join public service as eighth grade employees while non-cadre class-one officers will get the ninth grade when they join service.

As per the existing system, both cadres and non-cadres join service as ninth grade employees.

Besides, staffs of Bangladesh Bank and state-owned banks will get salaries in the same pay scale.

Another finance ministry official said if bankers are given separate pay scales, the others, including teachers, may demand the same. This was the reason why the government backtracked on the idea of giving them separate pay scales.

The official also said MPO-listed teachers will not get salaries under the new pay scale from January.

The education ministry will submit a report on MPO-listed educational institutions to the finance ministry. After reviewing it, the finance ministry will decide on which date the new pay scale will come into effect for those, added the official.

Of the 20 grades in the new pay scale, the highest one will see a rise in basic salary by 95 percent to Tk 78,000 (fixed) and the lowest one by 101 percent to Tk 8,250.

The cabinet secretary or the principal secretary or those in equivalent posts will get Tk 86,000 (fixed) and a senior secretary Tk 82,000 (fixed).

ALLOWANCES

Under the new pay scale, increments will be given in July every year irrespective of one's joining or promotion.

The government has also introduced a Bangla New Year bonus, equivalent to 20 percent of the basic salary, for public servants.

Every employee will get monthly medical allowance of Tk 1,500. Besides, he will get education allowance of Tk 500 for each of his two children. He, however, will not get any allowance for the third child.

The employees, who work in Dhaka city corporation area, will get 50 to 65 percent of their basic salaries as house allowance, while those in other city corporation areas will get 35 to 50 percent of their basic salaries.

As per the new pay scale, the employees, who live in government houses, will no longer be charged an additional 5 to 7.5 percent of their basic salaries.

The retirees aged above 65 will see their net pension rise by 50 percent. They will also get Tk 2,500 a month as medical allowance.

The net pension of other retirees will increase by 40 percent, and they will get a monthly medical allowance of Tk 1,500.

The government will require an additional Tk 19,107 crore to implement the new pay scale this fiscal year, and another Tk 27,418 crore in the next fiscal year for paying new bonuses and increments.