New pay scale

On December 10 most of the newspapers published the news that the Pay Commission did not have any connection with the news published earlier . The Commission said it would come up with the proposal in mid-January, 2005.

A question can be raised if the Commission is so late then how the proposed scale can be reviewed by the secretaries/in the cabinet and how that could be implemented from January? The Commission must be prompt in proposing the scale (within December).

The proposal should not vary much like the published one which varied in between 65% to 98%. I propose the scales to be a bit biased towards the lowest grade. May be the lowest grade can be upgraded to Tk 2,500 (the increase is about 67% from the present 1,500/-) and the highest to 24,000 (increasing from 15,000/- at about 60%). The percentage increase in each of the other scales should vary in between these two extremes.

The percentage of house rent should be redefined, no doubt, realising the actual increase in the house rent. Many are proposing that house rent should be as high as 100% of the basic pay. May be such a percentage would help the employees to live in better houses. But from where the government can arrange so much money? Some propose that the highest rate should be 60% in the cities and 45% for other areas.

I think, the rate should not be below 50% at any level or in any area. The rate in cities other than Dhaka may be 60% and that may apply also to the lower grades, up to the 11th, for the whole country. Since the actual house rent in Dhaka is the highest, the rate here may be 70% for the lower grades and 60% for the higher ones.

The medical allowance should also be increased with the increased basic pay. It should be at least Tk. 600. For the aged (over 50 years) employees, it can be Tk 700 or even 800. Tk 1,000 (as some propose) perhaps would be too high.