The government yesterday decided to form a task force to solve immediately the discrimination in salaries and grades created after awarding the eighth pay scale, prompting the public university teachers to go for demonstration.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina asked the three-member core committee of secretaries to form the task force, following an unscheduled meeting at her Cabinet Division office at Bangladesh Secretariat, officials said.
After its formation, the task force would be asked to submit a report to the authorities in three months, said a member of the core committee, which was formed on January 4 headed by Cabinet Secretary Shafiul Alam.
It would try to settle the discrimination, particularly in cases of public university teachers, Bangladesh Bank employees and officials of 26 cadres.
The official said the prime minister has advised to hold consultations with the finance minister in taking any decision in this regard.
“I think this kind of task force will not be able to solve the discrimination of public university teachers,” Prof ASM Maksud Kamal, general secretary of Dhaka University Teachers’ Association, told the Dhaka Tribune last night. “The task force will be constituted only with the cadre officials.”
Following the PM’s instruction, Principle Secretary to the Prime Minister’s Office Md Abul Kalam Azad, Senior Public Administration Secretary Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury and Senior Finance Secretary Mahbub Ahmed held a long meeting with the representatives of 26 cadres at the Finance Division.
Officials said the teachers’ representatives were invited at the meeting, but no one joined the meeting.
“No fruitful result came out at the meeting, however,” said an official.
Public university teachers have already announced to go for an indefinite strike from January 11 unless the government reviews the pay structure.
