Before the festive season, the government will give about 11 lakh railway employees a Productivity Linked Bonus (PLB) equal to 78 days’ salary. Many people ask: do railway employees really get a bonus equal to two and a half months’ salary? No. This is not fully true. The government counts the bonus in a way that lowers the actual amount. The real bonus is much less than 78 days’ salary. Let’s see the details.
What Does 78 Days’ Salary Mean?
Every year, the government gives a Productivity Linked Bonus (PLB) to non-gazetted railway employees (Group C and Group D). This year, the government approved a bonus equal to 78 days’ salary for 2024-25. The total cost will be about Rs 1,865.68 crore.
But the real salary of the employee is not used to calculate this bonus. The government has fixed a maximum monthly salary of Rs 7,000 for calculating the bonus. This means that even if a railway employee earns Rs 30,000 or Rs 50,000 per month, the bonus is calculated only on Rs 7,000.
How the Bonus Is Calculated
The formula is:
(Monthly salary ÷ 30) × Number of bonus days
Using the maximum salary limit:
(7,000 ÷ 30) × 78 = Rs 18,200
But the government has set the maximum bonus a little lower. This year, each eligible employee will get a maximum of Rs 17,951. So, even if 78-day bonus is announced, no one will get more than Rs 17,951.
Why It Feels Confusing
The term “78-day salary” sounds big and attractive. But it is only a technical term. It is a symbolic bonus to encourage employees. Because of the salary limit, the bonus is much less than the real salary for many employees.
Railway employees will get a 78-day bonus, but it is not equal to 78 days of their real salary. The bonus is capped at Rs 17,951 due to the salary limit of Rs 7,000 per month. This may be less than many workers expect.