Government unveils phased rollout of new public sector pay structure

After more than a decade under the same pay scale, public servants are set for salary increases under a staggered implementation plan

The BNP government has announced that a new pay structure for public sector employees will be implemented in phases from Jul 1, 2026.

Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury made the announcement while presenting the FY2026-27 budget on Thursday.

“Government employees have been receiving salaries and allowances under the same pay structure for nearly 11 years,” he said.

“In the meantime, the cost of living has increased significantly due to inflation. We are announcing the phased implementation of a new pay structure for government employees from Jul 1, 2026.”

Twenty days before the February election, the Ninth National Pay Commission recommended raising the minimum basic salary for government employees from Tk 8,250 to Tk 20,000 and the highest pay scale from Tk 78,000 to Tk 160,000.

At the time, then finance advisor Salehuddin Ahmed said funds had been allocated by the interim government to implement the commission’s recommendations.

However, after the election, the BNP government was unable to introduce the new structure immediately due to commitments in the social safety net sector and challenges arising from developments such as the war in West Asia.

On Apr 21, the government formed a 10-member committee led by Cabinet Secretary Nasimul Ghani to review the recommendations of the Ninth National Pay Commission.

Media reports said the committee proposed implementing the new structure in three phases.

Under the proposal:

● In FY2026-27, 50 percent of the revised basic pay structure will take effect.

● The remaining 50 percent of the revised basic salary will be implemented in the following fiscal year.

● In the third and final phase, in FY2028-29, different allowances and other financial benefits will be fully adjusted with the revised basic salary.

When submitting its recommendations, Pay Commission Chairman Zakir Ahmed Khan said implementing the proposals would require Tk 1.06 trillion.

The government currently spends Tk 1.31 trillion annually on 1.4 million public employees and 900,000 pensioners.

The Ninth National Pay Commission was formed 12 years after the Eighth Pay Commission was established in 2013.

What the New Pay Structure Proposes

The new structure narrows the gap between the highest and lowest grades, setting the ratio between maximum and minimum basic pay at 1:8, compared with the current 1:9.076. Previous pay commissions had also maintained the same ratio.

Basic salaries across all grades have been increased by roughly two to two-and-a-half times.

As a result, employees in the lowest grade would receive Tk 41,908 per month after adding house rent and other allowances to the revised basic salary.

The proposed basic salaries are:

● Grade 1: Tk 160,000 (from Tk 78,000)

● Grade 2: Tk 132,000 (from Tk 66,000)

● Grade 3: Tk 113,000 (from Tk 56,500)

● Grade 4: Tk 100,000 (from Tk 50,000)

● Grade 5: Tk 86,000 (from Tk 43,000)

● Grade 6: Tk 71,000 (from Tk 35,500)

● Grade 7: Tk 58,000 (from Tk 29,000)

● Grade 8: Tk 47,200 (from Tk 23,000)

● Grade 9: Tk 45,100 (from Tk 22,000)

● Grade 10: Tk 32,000 (from Tk 16,000)

● Grade 11: Tk 25,000 (from Tk 12,500)

● Grade 12: Tk 24,300 (from Tk 11,300)

● Grade 13: Tk 24,000 (from Tk 11,000)

● Grade 14: Tk 23,500 (from Tk 10,200)

● Grade 15: Tk 22,800 (from Tk 9,700)

● Grade 16: Tk 21,900 (from Tk 9,300)

● Grade 17: Tk 21,400 (from Tk 9,000)

● Grade 18: Tk 21,000 (from Tk 8,800)

● Grade 19: Tk 20,500 (from Tk 8,500)

● Grade 20: Tk 20,000 (from Tk 8,250)