Delay in Pay Scale Gazette Notification: How Government Employees Will Receive Arrears from July

Although the 9th National Pay Scale was announced to take effect from July 1, the government has not yet issued the official gazette notification. As a result, government officials and employees are currently drawing their salaries under the previous pay structure. However, sources from the Finance Division confirmed that once administrative and legal formalities are finalized and the notification is published, the additional amount owed from July will be paid out simultaneously as arrears.

According to the Finance Division, preparations to implement the recommendations of the pay commission are in their final stages. However, completing a series of essential administrative and legal procedures has caused a brief delay. Officials emphasized that despite the delay in issuing the notification, the new pay structure will remain retroactively effective from July 1, ensuring no financial loss for civil servants.

Relevant officials explained that implementing the National Pay Scale requires completing several mandatory steps following the submission of the commission's report and review by the Secretary Committee. The remaining formalities include obtaining Cabinet approval, drafting sector-specific executive orders, completing legal vetting by the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, acquiring a Statutory Regulatory Order (SRO) number, and publishing the official gazette.

Speaking at the Secretariat on Wednesday, Minister of Finance and Planning Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury stated that work on the 9th Pay Commission's recommendations is actively progressing and will be presented to the Cabinet shortly. Once approved, the gazette notification process will commence immediately. He clarified that the new pay structure is entirely independent of loans from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and assured that the notification would be issued without prolonged delay.

Conversely, observations from the IMF indicate that while government spending on programs such as Family Cards, Farmer Cards, subsidies, and social safety nets is increasing rapidly, revenue growth continues to lag behind. The IMF cautioned that introducing a new pay scale amidst persistent inflation and tight fiscal constraints could pose severe financial risks, advising the government to defer the implementation by at least two years. A final decision regarding the pay scale may emerge following upcoming negotiations with the IMF for a new loan package in October.