Tk 5,000cr Stimulus: Banks start disbursing workers' wages

[bluesky]

https://www.newagebd.net/article/105628/banks-start-disbursing-worker-wages

Tk 5,000cr Stimulus
Banks start disbursing worker wages
Staff Correspondent | Published: 22:01, May 03,2020

The country’s banks on Sunday started disbursing wages of more than 26 lakh workers of export-oriented industries, including apparel ones, as the central bank released Tk 2,000 crore from Tk 5,000 crore stimulus package announced by the government for the purpose.

Bankers said that they had started disbursing the wages after receiving fund from the central bank last week.

Trust Bank managing director and chief executive officer Faruq Mainuddin Ahmed told New Age that they had started disbursing the wages on the day through bank accounts and mobile financial service accounts of the workers as per the government instruction in this regard.

‘Before the disbursement, we verified the accounts submitted by the entities concerned,’ Mainuddin said.

He also said that the bank would disburse wages only through bank accounts.

Trust Bank has received around Tk 39 crore from the central bank for the payment of the wages and salaries of around 37,000 workers and staff of 31 entities for the month of April, he mentioned.

As per the government’s revised decision, the workers who had worked in April would get their full wages and the workers who did not work would get 60 per cent of their wages.

BB officials said that the central bank had already released Tk 2,000 crore to the banks from the government-announced Tk 5,000 crore stimulus package.

‘The BB released the amount in favour of 38 banks against their demand for Tk 2,566.19 crore,’ said BB executive director and spokesperson Md Serajul Islam.

He also said that the central bank had applied to the finance ministry to get the rest of the fund.

Of the 2,566.19 demanded by the 38 banks, EXIM Bank demanded Tk 540 crore for the payment of the workers’ wages of 122 entities and Southeast Bank demanded Tk 480 crore for the payment of the workers’ wages of 150 entities.

Earlier, the export-oriented businesses were asked to submit loan applications to their respective banks within May 2 to avail the benefits of the government’s stimulus package.

The Tk 5,000 crore fund would be utilised for the disbursement of wages of workers and employees for three months from April to June, according to BB guidelines.

 

[UKBengali]

@Atlas @ebr77 - This is the scheme that BD government needs to expand to include middle-class families that have either suffered a total or partial loss of income due to coronavirus.

Everyone has bank accounts and it should be easy to do.

 

[Tom-tom]

@Atlas @ebr77 - This is the scheme that BD government needs to expand to include middle-class families that have either suffered a total or partial loss of income due to coronavirus.

Everyone has bank accounts and it should be easy to do.

I been to bangladesh, I can tell there a portion of bd citizens that don't have bank
Accounts, my extended family have privately dispersed, money to the poor.

 

[UKBengali]

I been to bangladesh, I can tell there a portion of bd citizens that don't have bank
Accounts, my extended family have privately dispersed, money to the poor.

Figure of speech.

Most do, can worry about the few that don't later.

Anyway I was talking about middle-class people and I would be surprised if any in this group do not have bank accounts.

 

[bluesky]

Figure of speech.

Most do, can worry about the few that don't later.
Anyway I was talking about middle-class people and I would be surprised if any if this group do not have bank accounts.

Actually, the question is not if these middle income people, now without jobs, hold accounts in a bank or not. The issue is to sort out who of them still have jobs and who do not because of CoVID-19. I think the govt should set up an organ to receive applications from the needy, the organ verifies the claims, and once it is done a family becomes eligible to get benefits.

However, it is state money and the govt must be fair to all, a state cannot pay more to a family because the householder's earning was higher than a poor. The system must be fair and transparent.

The latest news seems to be an incomplete statement to me but shows the PM wants to do something.

https://www.newagebd.net/article/105717/pm-announces-cash-aid-for-jobless-on-eid

 

[UKBengali]

Actually, the question is not if these middle income people, now without jobs, hold accounts in a bank or not. The issue is to sort out who of them still have jobs and who do not because of CoVID-19. I think the govt should set up an organ to receive applications from the needy, the organ verifies the claims, and once it is done, a family becomes liable to get benefits.

However, it is state money and the govt must be fair to all, a state cannot pay more to a family because the householder's earning was higher than a poor or he has more children. The system must be fair and transparent.

The latest news that seems an incomplete statement to me.

https://www.newagebd.net/article/105717/pm-announces-cash-aid-for-jobless-on-eid

Well in UK government is paying 80% of workers salaries up to a certain upper level.

This seems fair as the higher your income the more taxes you paid when in work.

As long as BD government can provide minimum for housing, food and bills to all then this should suffice.

The speed of getting help to the right people is most important.

 

[bluesky]

Well in UK government is paying 80% of workers salaries up to a certain upper level.

This seems fair as the higher your income the more taxes you paid when in work.

As long as BD government can provide minimum for housing, food and bills to all then this should suffice.

The speed of getting help to the right people is most important.

Let us see what happens next. PM has announced a program to be implemented before Eid. In the case of England or other such countries, they are as developed as their taxation system is. How about BD? Is the Income Tax collection system effective here?

There are corporate tax, VAT, import taxes and duties. But, an income tax system has not been universally introduced and no one possibly submits Income Tax Return. So, no one really knows a person's income.

What the GoB is trying to do is in essence giving doles to the needy. It should be fair to all who receives it.

https://www.newagebd.net/article/105721/private-job-holders-livelihood-on-the-line

 

[ebr77]

@Atlas @ebr77 - This is the scheme that BD government needs to expand to include middle-class families that have either suffered a total or partial loss of income due to coronavirus.

Everyone has bank accounts and it should be easy to do.

The Garments owners are using this money from this stimulus package to pay the salary for the garments workers only . It was created for them .

I think you have seen in recent news that the Doctors / Nurses / health workers in private sector were told they would be given 50% salary and no bonus , until they started protesting . If that is the condition of the doctors , nurses I guess you can imagine for rest of the private sector .

Well in UK government is paying 80% of workers salaries up to a certain upper level.

This seems fair as the higher your income the more taxes you paid when in work.

As long as BD government can provide minimum for housing, food and bills to all then this should suffice.

The speed of getting help to the right people is most important.

We don’t have that kind of mechanism here . Plus it needs greater non-corrupt political will and general awareness to Create that kinda system .

If such system existed then how will political leaders benefit !!

 

[bluesky]

The Garments owners are using this money from this stimulus package to pay the salary for the garments workers only . It was created for them .

I think you have seen in recent news that the Doctors / Nurses / health workers in private sector were told they would be given 50% salary and no bonus , until they started protesting . If that is the condition of the doctors , nurses I guess you can imagine for rest of the private sector .

However, the govt grants should include all small or big job holders. PM may be talking in that line. Very unclear but there are hints of helping people before Eid.

https://www.newagebd.net/article/105721/private-job-holders-livelihood-on-the-line

 

[UKBengali]

However, the govt grants should include all small or big job holders. PM may be talking in that line. Very unclear but there are hints of helping people before Eid.

https://www.newagebd.net/article/105721/private-job-holders-livelihood-on-the-line

Looks like some of the employers are dishonest and lack morals.
They should pay their employees the full salary even if business has gone down. All decent employers should have sufficient cash reserves for emergencies for this.

BD government will help the middle-class but for obvious reasons has targeted the poor first.
The problem seems to be an administrative issue rather than one of intent on the BD government's part.

 

[bluesky]

Looks like some of the employers are dishonest and lack morals.
They should pay their employees the full salary even if business has gone down. All decent employers should have sufficient cash reserves for emergencies for this.

BD government will help the middle-class but for obvious reasons has targeted the poor first.
The problem seems to be an administrative issue rather than one of intent on the BD government's part.

Bold Part: The usual BD culture is that the big employers would prove their helplessness with a shortage of cash money. They will seek special loans from the govt/banks for paying salaries to their employees.

When the situation improves, the employers will tend to forget to pay back the loans. Within a month after the situation improves you will see Dhaka prime land prices rising fast because they will start big purchasing of properties in Dhaka and will seek hundred ways to defer paying back the money.