As the lockdown continues to hammer industrial and business activities, payment of salary has become a contentious issue. Though a tri-part taskforce, comprising of representative from government, private sector and labour unions mandated to find a resolve to the issue is currently working, no progress in salary management has been made till date. Despite holding five meetings since its inception some two months ago, the taskforce has not been able to find a common ground between the disagreeing sides and associations of private sector and labour unions are competing against each other to submit memorandum to the government lately. Both sides have refused to budge from their positions; employers are saying that they cannot pay more than 50 percent of usual wages of employees while labour union leaders are demanding employers to pay 50 percent for now and the remaining after businesses resume their operations as directed by the government.   

According to Bharat Raj Acharya, vice chairman of Employers’ Council which is under the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), the council on June 8 submitted a memorandum at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers Office requesting for proactive role of government to resolve the issue as taskforce could not reach to a conclusion. Acharya informed that it submitted a joint letter of FNCCI, Federation of Nepali Small and Cottage Industries (FNSCI) and other private sector bodies incorporating their concepts for resolving the issues related to salary payment. “We have reiterated that workers can be paid a maximum of 50 percent of their salaries at present,” he said. According to him, industrial enterprises cannot pay salaries to those workers who are absent at work during the lockdown.

Meanwhile, labour unions are also preparing to counter the move of employers demanding that the government’s directive to clear the salary dues of Chaitra and Baisakh is implemented. Major labour unions including General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT) and Nepal Trade Union Congress (NTUC) are said to be submitting memorandum to Office of the Prime Minister, Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security and the Federal Parliament’s labour committee. “We want to attract attention of the government that employers have ignored its direction to clear the salary dues,” said Pushkar Acharya, president of NTUC. According to him, 75 percent employers in the country haven’t yet registered their businesses at the Social Security Fund. “Salary payment for Jestha can be negotiated and agreed separately. But it is wrong to hold the salaries when there is a possibility that the wages of Baisakh can pe paid partially after businesses resume their operations,” he said.