Committee to review new wage recommendations for journalists: Hasan Mahmud

A new cabinet committee will be formed to review the recommendations of the ninth wage board on raising the salaries of newspaper and news agency workers, says Information Minister Hasan Mahmud.

Briefing the media at the Dhaka Reporters Unity on Sunday, Mahmud said: “I thought of calling a cabinet committee meeting today after speaking to members of the previous cabinet committee. But it wasn't possible to do so because the old committee can no longer deal with these matters as a new government has been formed.”  

“A new committee will be formed under the instructions of the prime minister which will then review the recommendations. We will then meet with media leaders and stakeholders, after which we will work on implementing the new wage scale as quickly as possible,” he added.

On Dec 9 of last year, a cabinet committee headed by the cultural affairs minister was formed to review the recommendations of the ninth wage board.

The committee included the minister of industries, the minister of home affairs, the labour minister and the information minister. The information ministry provided secretarial assistance to the committee.

The eighth pay structure for newspaper and news agency workers was announced on Sept 15, 2013, boosting the base wage by 75 percent. It came into effect on Sept 11 of that year.

On Jan 29 of last year, the government formed the ninth wage board led by retired Appellate Division Justice Mohammed Nizamul Huq to set the new salary structure for workers at newspapers and news agencies.

Later, the government announced that journalists and other employees of newspapers and news agencies will receive 45 percent dearness allowance, effective retrospectively from Mar 1.

The head of the ninth wage board, retired Justice Mohammed Nizamul Huq, subsequently submitted its recommendations to the then information minister Hasanul Haq Inu at his Secretariat office on Nov 4.

The wage board recommended an 80 percent base salary increment in the top three wage grades and an 85 percent raise in the bottom three grades, said Cabinet Secretary Shafiul Alam.