10 months of unpaid wages cannot be justified
There is simply no excuse as to why healthcare workers of four City Health Centres and one Maternity Centre in Barishal have not been paid their wages for 10 months. The sit-in protest on Saturday of dozens of healthcare workers demanding clearance of their salaries from January 2018 is completely justified, and shows the bureaucratic hurdles that can jeopardise laudable public projects.
An NGO has been operating the healthcare centres—launched in Barishal under the Urban Primary Health Care Services Delivery Project of the LGRD ministry in 2006—through an agreement, the terms of which have recently expired. According to the NGO project manager, an invoice for the salaries of January to March had been submitted to the LGRD ministry, but is yet to be approved. On the other hand, an official supervising the health centres has told this newspaper that the LGRD ministry has decided "on principle" to launch a second phase of the project for a further 10 years. And ultimately, the worst affected from this bureaucratic limbo are the healthcare workers, unpaid for almost a year!
The Barishal City Corporation (BCC), which oversees the overall project, the NGO operating the project, and the LGRD ministry have all failed these healthcare workers. The entirety of the problem—from the delay in approving the invoice to extension of the project—could have been avoided, if these bodies had played their part accountably and professionally. The unpaid wages must be cleared immediately. Furthermore, the demands of the workers (such as transferring the project from the LGRD to the health ministry) needs to be given serious thought. Whatever may be the final decision on how best to run these centres, a service as important as primary healthcare delivery, and the people who provide that service, cannot be shown such apathy that they have to finally stage sit-ins to demand their rightful salary.
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