SDF employees demand job security, resignation of Chairman and MD

Staff of the Social Development Foundation (SDF) have launched a movement with two demands: ensuring job security and the resignation of the organization’s top two officials.

They have called for urgent government intervention to meet their demands and announced that they will continue their peaceful movements until the demands are fulfilled.

Leaders of the SDF Officers and Employees Unity Council raised the demands at a press conference held at the National Press Club on Friday afternoon.

Advocate Md Abdul Latif Mia, convener of the organization’s national committee, read out a written statement at the press conference.

He said SDF employees had long been contributing to the socioeconomic development of rural poor and marginalized communities, poverty alleviation, women’s empowerment and employment generation.

However, uncertainty over project duration and funding has left around 1,500 employees and their families worried about their future, he said.

According to the written statement, around 1,165 officers and employees are currently working under SDF’s RELI project. Many of them have been involved in the organization’s development activities for 15 to 25 years.

The employees said the withdrawal of World Bank funding and uncertainty over the project's future had put their jobs and their families’ financial security at risk.

They alleged that the job security of experienced and skilled employees was being undermined on the pretext of the project’s completion.

The employees argued that the end of a project should not mean the end of the careers of those who have contributed to the organization for years. Instead, their experience and skills should be treated as institutional assets, and they should be given priority in new projects.

The press conference was also informed that the RELI project’s tenure had been extended for six months, from May 29 to November 28, with government funding. However, the employees said the extension did not provide long-term job security.

They called on the government to take effective steps to resolve the crisis.

The first of their two demands is an extension of their employment tenure before November 28. They also want job security for current employees, workers phased out from the project and personnel from the fisheries department under new projects.

Their second demand is the resignation of SDF Chairman Dr Mohammad Abdul Majid and Managing Director Nurul Amin. The protesters alleged that the two officials were involved in corruption and had benefited from the previous government.

The employees said their movement was not against any institution but aimed at securing their legitimate rights, jobs and livelihoods. They vowed to continue peaceful protests until their demands were met.

They also urged the government to take immediate steps to preserve SDF’s institutional capacity, protect public investment and ensure the livelihood security of families associated with the organization.