Ninth Pay Scale Draft Finalised, Heading to Cabinet

The draft proposal for the long-awaited Ninth National Pay Scale has been finalised in principle and is being prepared for submission to the Cabinet, with the government considering raising basic salaries by up to 100%.

A committee headed by the Cabinet Secretary has given the draft in-principle approval for placement before the Cabinet, according to officials involved in the process.

If Prime Minister Tarique Rahman approves the proposal, it could be placed before the Cabinet this week, a senior government source said.

The proposed pay structure does not provide for an equal percentage increase across all 20 grades. Instead, the committee has recommended relatively larger increases for employees in lower grades than for those in higher grades.

The draft proposes implementing the new pay scale in two phases. The first phase would focus on increasing basic salaries, while the second would cover allowances and other financial benefits.

However, the Cabinet could amend the proposal, including changing the number of implementation phases.

The draft envisages partial implementation from July this year, with full implementation targeted for January 2028. Under the proposal, government employees could receive revised basic salaries before the full package of allowances and other benefits takes effect.

Judiciary Issues Under Review

Officials said some complications involving the judiciary emerged during the finalisation of the proposed pay structure.

The government has formed a seven-member special committee headed by Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury to review the issues and recommend solutions.

The committee's findings could influence the final structure of the pay scale before it goes to the Cabinet for approval.

The latest proposal is more conservative than the recommendations of the Ninth Pay Commission, which submitted its report in July 2025.

The Pay Commission had recommended increasing basic salaries by 100% to 140%, raising the minimum basic salary from Tk8,250 to Tk20,000 and the maximum from Tk78,000 to Tk160,000.

The Cabinet Secretary-led committee, however, has proposed a maximum basic salary increase of 100%, with different rates for different grades.

The figures could still change before the Cabinet makes its final decision.

The move comes nearly a decade after the Eighth National Pay Scale was introduced in 2015. Although government employees have continued to receive annual increments, rising living costs and inflation have increased pressure for a new pay structure.

The Ninth Pay Scale is being closely watched as it could affect not only basic salaries but also allowances, pensions and other benefits linked to the national pay structure.