Islami Bank has brought major changes in its recruitment policy and decided to hire people from all religions based on merit and efficiency.

“Recruitment will be done through experienced, neutral and professional institutions on the basis of merit and qualification irrespective of religion, caste and creed,” the bank said in a statement yesterday.

Children of freedom fighters will also be recruited, it said.

The bank will also increase job opportunities for females. Currently, it has only 510 female staff out of its 13,500 employees.

“More female employees will be recruited for women empowerment,” the statement said.

The decisions were made in a meeting of the board of directors held on January 5. Arastoo Khan, the newly-elected chairman, and other directors of the bank were present, the statement said.

At the meeting, changes were made to the posts of the bank's chairman, managing director, heads of various committees and the chief of the Islami Bank Foundation.

Arastoo Khan, a former bureaucrat and representative of Armada Spinning Mills Limited that owns 2 percent stakes in Islami Bank, was elected chairman of the bank.

On January 8, Arastoo told a press conference that the bank would now follow “merit-based recruitment”.

The bank is open to all. If people of other religions are willing to work at the bank, they can sit for recruitment tests, he had said.

“We will hire them if they are meritorious and qualified.”

According to yesterday's statement, Islami Bank Bangladesh Ltd shall continue its sharia principles and fundamental values. “It will apply zero tolerance policy regarding compliance of Islamic sharia.”

Employee salary structure will be revised in comparison with other banks, the statement also said.

It said the board of directors agreed that no employee shall be terminated.

At the January 8 press conference, the bank's newly-elected vice chairman Syed Ahsanul Alam said the reshuffle in the bank board was aimed at freeing the first generation bank from the perception that it practised “political Islam”.

He said the previous board had problems relating to “set up” and “mindset”. “Political Islam” was practised within the organisation and there was an attempt to cash in on Islam.

“The question is not whether the previous boards were good or bad ... they were good, but they had to face criticism ... they were not respected. That's why the changes were brought,” he said at the briefing.

The bank's new board is comprised of 16 members. Seven of them come from some little-known companies that own more than 14 percent stakes in the bank.

Islami Bank is now the largest bank in the country with a deposit of Tk 68,000 crore and an advance of Tk 65,000 crore.