Editorial
Accord with SKOP
The 12-point agreement between the government and the Sramik Karmachari Oikkya Parishad (SKOP) has caused justified consternation among people who keep the interest of the national economy uppermost in their minds. It is the one-sided, sweeping and overly simplistic tone, temper and texture of the accord that make us suspect whether it is an outcome of economic consideration or of short-sighted political expediency.
We are sympathetic of the government's decision to constitute a Wages Commission to determine a national minimum wage for the industrial workers in accord with the price indices. But in setting a deadline for its formation (within a month), announcement of its award (within six months) and its implementation with retroactive effect as from July 1, 1997, the government has not involved the industrialists and employers in the private sector who would be at the receiving end of things. To say that the government is the milching cow and it will go on paying for the public sector till the emptying out of its exchequer, so why should the private sector bother, is a grave error of judgment. It is just not that the private sector sneezes if the public sector has caught cold, it is actually cold and fever both attacking the private sector if the public sector has gone seriously wrong and sick. Mounting losses of the SOES force the government to borrow from the banking system. A credit squeeze throttles the private sector's windpipe as the government draws donor flak for deficit financing.
We fail to understand why the tripartite consultative committee where the private sector employers are represented was bypassed in making those consequential decisions last Tuesday.
The accord is not only silent on the rationale of linkage between productivity and wages, it has some loudly-proclaimed negative elements also to make matters worse. It has been announced, for example, that no massive denationalisation of industries will be undertaken. This and other caving-in concessions to the SKOP could very well send contradictory signals about the government's privatisation or free market policy.
After one and a half years' wrestling with details the government produced new pay scales which it is hard-put now to implement. And when the public sector's earning capacity has dropped, it is thinking of raising the salaries.
Under the circumstances, we think the agreement with SKOP is going to have a serious negative impact on the economy and work as a disincentive for the investors, both local and foreign.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel.
Comments