Published :
Updated :
For all latest news, follow The Financial Express Google News channel.
Bangladesh Secretariat employees kept Finance Adviser Dr Salehuddin Ahmed confined to his office for five and a half hours on Wednesday, demanding a 20 per cent "secretariat allowance".
The agitated employees said the National Press Club and the Bangladesh Secretariat area was the centre of almost all political, public, and private professionals' movements in the country.
They said they had to work under increased risks and pressure every day due to frequent rallies, processions, and security situations in the area.
Besides, they said they were frequently forced to stay in office beyond working hours due to important work done by their bosses.
Moreover, they argued that the employees of similar ranks and status working in other public offices, especially those of the president and the chief adviser, as well as the Parliament Secretariat, were given various allowances and financial benefits for working overtime.
However, the administrative officers, personal officers, office assistants, and other lower-grade employees who joined the agitation were not getting any such allowances even for doing overtime.
Some 300-400 employees under the banner of Bangladesh Secretariat Officer-Worker Sanjukti Parishard began chanting slogans, blocking both the entry and exit of the finance adviser's office after 2:30pm.
President of the association Badiul Kabir said they would not leave the place until a government order was issued implementing their demand.
Sources said during the confinement, the finance adviser had a meeting with the finance secretary.
At one stage, the employees were told that an order in this regard would be issued on Monday next week.
However, the angry employees refused to accept the offer.
Public Relations Officer of the finance ministry Gazi Touhidul Islam told The Financial Express at 8:20pm that the agitators had finally agreed to leave the premises after 8:00pm as they were told that the government order implementing their demand would be issued on Thursday (today).
A good number of law enforcement officials were deployed at the scene to avoid untoward incidents.
syful-islam@outlook.com