8th Pay Commission: There’s been quite a stir over the Terms of Reference (ToR) for the 8th Pay Commission. Various employee groups and trade unions linked to the central government are claiming that around 69 lakh pensioners have been left out of the new pay commission’s scope. Plus, the ToR doesn’t specify when the recommendations will be put into action, which has really upset the employees. Many unions are pushing back against the government’s one-sided approach to setting up a new pay commission and drafting its plans, even threatening to protest. So far, the government hasn’t said a word about these concerns.
Everyone’s now looking forward to the winter session of Parliament starting on December 1st. It’s anticipated that Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will shed some light on the government’s position regarding this matter. Just like in past sessions, there will be a lot of questions about the 8th Pay Commission, but this time, MPs are expected to directly address the inconsistencies in the ToR. Besides the ToR, several long-standing issues for central employees, including pensions, DA, and other retirement perks, are likely to be hot topics during this session.
8th CPC formation and DA merger are key issues
MP Anand Bhadoria has requested written responses from the government on two crucial points:
1. The establishment of the 8th Pay Commission (8th CPC)
2. The decision to combine dearness allowance (DA) with basic pay
Hundreds of similar questions have already been submitted to the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha websites. The current pay system is based on the 7th Pay Commission, which started on January 1, 2016. Historically, a new Pay Commission is set up every ten years. Following this pattern, 2026 is the expected year for the new Pay Commission to be implemented. Nearly 10 million central employees and pensioners are now waiting for the government to clarify its stance on the ToR issue.
Unions allege that the government has deliberately excluded 6.9 million pensioners by changing the language in the ToR. All eyes are now on the government’s response to this allegation. Another major controversy concerns the merger of dearness allowance (DA) and dearness relief (DR) into basic pay. Employee organizations say that over the past three decades, DA has failed to keep pace with retail inflation. DA has already exceeded 50%, which was previously a mandatory requirement for DA merger. DA merger provides immediate relief and also increases pensions and other allowances.