8TH PAY COMMISSION: The central government led by PM Modi had approved the formation of the 8th Pay Commission in January this year, but the three-member panel has not been formed for it yet. In such a situation, central employees are waiting for the formation of the 8th Pay Commission. Meanwhile, news has come that the 8th Pay Commission may propose a lower fitment factor than the expected one.
According to two employee union leaders involved in the deliberations, if the Centre merges dearness allowance with basic pay, the 8th Pay Commission may propose a lower fitment factor than initially expected, while the Staff Forum has demanded a fitment factor in the range of 2.57 to 2.86.
Fitment factor may be reduced
People aware of the matter indicated that if the merger of DA and basic salary gets official approval, the 8th Pay Commission may recommend a multiplication unit that is significantly lower. Speaking to the media, an official said that if the Central government merges the dearness allowance with the basic pay, then the fitment factor may be lower than what is reported in the recent news. It is worth noting that the fitment factor is the multiplier used to revise the salaries of government employees and the pension of retired employees. In 2016, the 7th Pay Commission had implemented a fitment factor of 2.57 to revise salaries and pensions.
The rule continued till the 5th Pay Commission
Let us tell you that under the 5th Pay Commission which ran from 1996 to 2006, the rule was that when the main allowance exceeds 50 percent, then the basic salary is merged with DA. Accordingly, the government integrated DA with basic pay in 2004. However, the Sixth Pay Commission, which was implemented from 2006 to 2016, abolished this rule.
DA increased by 2 percent
After the 2 percent increase in DA last week, it has become 55 percent of the basic salary. If 50 percent of this is added to the basic salary – as demanded by employee forums – then the minimum basic salary can increase from Rs 18 thousand to Rs 27 thousand even before the implementation of the 8th Pay Commission. Apart from this, the fitment factor recommended by the pay panel will be multiplied in the revised basic pay, which will lead to a sharp increase in the salary.
It is noteworthy that the Finance Ministry had clarified in Parliament last month that it is currently not considering any proposal to integrate DA with the basic salary of central government employees. However, union leaders aware of the matter said the finance ministry has not completely ruled out the merger but only said that no such proposal is currently under consideration.