The Minimum Wage Board has proposed Tk 13,500 as gross monthly pay for tannery workers, leading to an increase by 54 per cent from the existing Tk 8,740 set in 2011. The board last week published the draft pay structure in a gazette notification seeking, if there is any, written objections against or suggestions on the recommendation in 14 days.The board would make its final recommendation on the minimum wage for the sector to the government after considering the objection or suggestion, if it gets any, according to the notification. In the draft minimum pay structure, the board incorporated five grades for workers and four grades for employees. The proposed wages would increase at the rate of 5 per cent per year. According to the draft, for grade-5 or unskilled workers, the board proposed Tk 13,500 that includes Tk 7,000 as basic pay, Tk 1,000 as medical allowance and Tk 600 as conveyance allowance, Tk 4,900 or 70 per cent of basic pay as housing allowance for workers in divisional cities and Savar area.The minimum wages for workers in other areas across the country has been proposed at Tk 12,800. Basic pay, medical allowance and conveyance allowance has been proposed similar with workers in divisional cities and Savar area. They would get housing allowance at Tk 4,200 or 60 per cent of basic pay. Minimum wages for employees in grade-4 has been proposed in line with fifth-grade workers. Housing allowance, medical and conveyance allowance has been proposed at the same rate for all grade workers and employees. Grade-5 workers were currently receiving Tk 8,750 as gross monthly pay. For grade-4 workers, the wage board has proposed Tk 15,710 as monthly gross pay for workers in divisional cities and Savar area and Tk 14,880 for workers in other areas. The board proposed monthly minimum wages at Tk 17,920 for grade-3 workers in divisional cities and Savar area and Tk 16,960 for workers in other areas. For grade-2 workers, the wage board has proposed Tk 21,150 as minimum monthly wage for divisional cities and Savar area and Tk 20,000 for other areas.Grade-1workers at divisional cities and Savar area might get Tk 25,400 as monthly minimum wage while workers in other areas might get Tk 24,000 per month, if the draft was finalised as it is. Apprentice period would be six-month long when the salary would be monthly Tk 7,000. Bangladesh Tannery Workers’ Union General Secretary Md Abdul Malek said that they recommended Tk 16,000 as minimum gross pay for grade-5 workers. The proposed rate is lower than the proposal of the union. ‘We will analyse the draft pay structure and then give our reaction,’ he said.
