The 9th and 10th Wage Boards will be implemented together, Prime Minister’s Information and Broadcasting Adviser Dr Zahed Ur Rahman has said. He made the comment Tuesday, responding to a reporter’s question at a briefing organized to update the media on the progress of various government initiatives.
Asked about ensuring government benefits for journalists working at private newspapers and television stations, and about implementing the 9th and 10th Wage Boards, the adviser said journalists’ situation is a “real problem.” He said the ministry is working on related issues, including the crisis in electronic media.
Responding to reporters’ point that, although discussions were held on a 9th Wage Board after the 8th, it was never implemented, and that there has long been a demand to implement a 10th Wage Board as well, he said: “They will certainly be implemented … I’m not disagreeing with you.”
Asked whether the 9th and 10th Wage Boards would be implemented together, he said: “They will be together.”
Zahed Ur Rahman said that without ensuring job security and livelihoods for journalists, good journalism isn’t possible. He said the government will act quickly on this.
On the new national pay scale, he said that raising the salaries of such a large number of people could create some inflationary risk. However, he said, not everyone’s salary will double under the new pay structure. Because a new pay scale hadn’t been introduced for a long time, many government employees’ current salaries, through regular increments, had already moved close to the new scale. He said Bangladesh Bank will use the policy tools at its disposal to control inflation, and the government will also take necessary regulatory steps.