The government has appointed three new permanent members to the Minimum Wages Board, with two of them being the representatives of owners and workers.
The other has been appointed as an independent member. The labour and employment ministry issued a notification in this regard on November 18, announcing the new members.
According to the notification, Asif Ayub, joint secretary general of Bangladesh Employers' Federation (BEF), has been appointed as the owners' representative. He replaced Moksud Belal Siddiqui, deputy secretary general of BEF.
On the other hand, Anwar Hossain, president of Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Sramik Dal, will be representing workers. He succeeded Sultan Ahmad, joint secretary of Jatiya Sramik League.
Besides, Md Nazim Uddin Bhuiyan, a professor in the Department of Accounting and Information Systems at Dhaka University, has been appointed as an independent member. He replaced Md Kamal Uddin, another Dhaka University professor.
The Minimum Wages Board comprises six members led by its chairman. In addition to the two permanent representatives of owners and workers as well as the independent member, the board has two temporary members, who are appointed from respective sectors at the time of wage review.
According to the labour law, wages are reviewed for the country's 42 formal sectors every five years. However, according to a recent study, out of the 42 formal sectors, around 20 have not seen any regular wage increase in the last six to forty years.
Without clear calculations and economic justifications, the wage-setting process may lack transparency and fairness, which could lead to dissatisfaction from both workers and employers, the law says.
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