The government has appointed three new permanent members to the minimum wage board, replacing the previous representatives from owners, workers and independent sectors, according to the labour ministry officials.

The labour ministry on November 18 issued a notification announcing the appointments.

As per the notification of the ministry, Bangladesh Employers Federation joint secretary Asif Ayub has been appointed as the permanent member representing the owners on the board.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Sramik Dal president Anwar Hossain will represent the workers as the permanent workers’ representative.

These new appointments replaced the previous members BEF deputy secretary Moksud Belal Siddique and the Jatiya Sramik League joint secretary Sultan Ahmad.

Meanwhile, the notification said that a Dhaka University professor Md Nazim Uddin Bhuiyan has been appointed as the independent member of the board, taking over from a professor of the same university Md Kamal Uddin.

The Minimum Wage Board consists of six members, including a chairman, two permanent representatives from the owners and workers’ sides, and an independent member.

Additionally, two temporary members are appointed from the relevant sectors during wage reviews.

Under the Bangladesh Labour Act 2006, wages are reviewed every five years for the country’s 42 formal sectors.

However, a recent study revealed that nearly 47.6 per cent of these sectors—20 out of the 42—have not experienced any regular wage increase in the past six to forty years.

The study also identified that the wage declaration process by the minimum wages board faced notable challenges, including significant delays, controversies over the selection of worker representatives, and a lack of transparency in how wages were calculated.

It said that the calculations were not publicly disclosed, and independent members never provided separate assessments.

The study identified that political influences could impact wage decisions, as seen in sectors like tea, and the declared wages often fall short of workers’ expectations.