Civil Servant to Get Pay Raise by 15 percent
The government has announced to increase the salaries of civil servants by 15 percent which will be effective from the next fiscal year.
In the budget for the next fiscal year, salaries of civil servants, the army, police, teachers, and other employees have been increased.
After the hike, the salary of the Chief Secretary of the government has increased by Rs 10,071 to Rs 77,211 excluding grade. Currently, the monthly salary of the Chief Secretary is Rs 67,140.
The salaries of government secretaries, who have been receiving Rs 62,680 per month, have been increased by Rs 9,490. Starting from the next fiscal year, their monthly salaries will be Rs 71,990. The salary of the Joint Secretary has been increased by Rs 7,407. The Joint Secretary will get Rs 56,787 per month.
The salary of the Under Secretary has been increased by Rs 6,357 and that of Section Officer by Rs 5,698. Now the Under-secretary will get Rs 48,737 and the Section Officer will get Rs 43,689 from the next fiscal year.
Rs 7.05 bn Allocated for PM Employment Program
The government has allocated a budget of Rs 7.05 billion for the Prime Minister Employment Program (PMEP) for the next fiscal year.
The federal budget for FY 2022/23 has reduced the budget for the PMEP for the next fiscal year as compared to the current fiscal year. The government had allocated a budget of Rs 12 billion for PMEP for the current fiscal year.
The new federal budget has proposed to modify the structure of the Prime Minister’s Employment Program to make it effective and provide jobs to more unemployed youth across the country.
The government has planned to provide employment to 200,000 registered unemployed youth through the employment service center in the next fiscal year. The PMEP aims to provide a minimum of 100 days of employment to the unemployed person. Similarly, employment opportunities will be provided to at least 500,000 poor unemployed citizens by registering them as labor cooperatives at the concerned local levels and involving them in the construction of development projects of up to Rs 100 million.
The new budget has proposed forming a high-level coordination committee under the leadership of the Minister of Labor, Employment, and Social Security to eliminate duplication and conduct skill-based training in a coordinated manner by making the employment-related programs being conducted by various agencies systematic and effective.
The National Labor Foundation will be formed to play a leading role in establishing good labor relations in industry and business, promoting collective bargaining, establishing reconciliation between employers and workers, enhancing the effectiveness of labor inspection, study and research of labor market and skill, and development and welfare of workers.
Health Check of Migrant Workers Only After Completing All Procedures of Labor Approval
Stakeholders have agreed to solve the problem seen in the biometric health examination of workers going to Malaysia for foreign employment. A meeting of Labor Minister Krishna Kumar Shrestha, Secretary Eknarayan Aryal, representatives of recruitment companies and health clinics at the Ministry of Labor, Employment and Social Security has decided that the biometric health examination of the workers will be done only after completing all the procedures of pre-labor approval.
It is estimated that thousands of workers go to the clinics for biometric health check-ups daily before the labor approval process begins. Under the new arrangement, health institutions listed for foreign employment will conduct the biometric health check of migrant workers only after they’ve completed the pre-labor approval process and received the lot (LT) number. Health professionals said that the pressure for health check-ups has increased as Malaysia, which is a major destination country for Nepali workers, has opened for employment after a long time.
It was also decided that health practitioners and recruiters would issue a joint statement to resolve the problems seen during the health check-up, not to conduct health check-ups without completing all the pre-labor approval procedures and bring the non-compliant organizations under the ambit of government action.
NRB Issues Foreign Employment Savings Bond
Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) has issued Foreign Employment Savings Bond-2084 from June 1.
Issuing a public notice, NRB said that the bond will help to mobilize the money send as remittances by the migrant workers.
The central bank has asked Nepalis who are in foreign employment to invest in the five-year maturity bond. The savings bond offers an interest rate of 12.50 percent per annum which is higher than the average interest rate offered by banks and financial institutions.
According to NRB, interested individuals can apply online to purchase the bond by June 20. Nepalis working abroad, non-resident Nepalis and people who have returned from foreign employment are eligible to apply for the savings bond.
Govt Announces Serbia As New Labor Destination
The government has announced Serbia as a new foreign employment destination. The southeastern European country has been added to the list of Nepal’s labor destinations as per the proposal of the Ministry of Labor, Employment and Social Security. The government has decided to allow foreign employment businesses to operate in Serbia as per sub-section 3 of section 3 of the Foreign Employment Act 2064.
In recent years, the attraction of Nepali workers towards Serbia has been seen growing. According to recruitment agencies, many Nepali youths are now coming to them requesting the opportunity to go to Serbia.
