The 8th Pay Commission has started its consultation meetings with employee unions and staff representatives across the country, with the Delhi round of discussions concluding between April 28 and April 30.
During the Delhi meetings, the commission held discussions with representatives from the National Council-Joint Consultative Machinery (NC-JCM) and several employee bodies on issues related to fitment factor, salary hikes, pension reforms, allowances and the old pension scheme.
As part of its continuing exclusive coverage of the 8th Pay Commission discussions, India Today has learnt that one of the major suggestions raised during these meetings was to reduce the gap between two Pay Commissions from 10 years to 5 years.
However, employee representatives clarified that changing the duration between two Pay Commissions does not directly fall under the purview of the 8th Pay Commission itself. Instead, union leaders said they wanted commission members to place this demand before the government during discussions and recommendations.
The commission is now scheduled to continue consultations in other parts of the country. According to the latest schedule shared by the 8th Pay Commission, the next meetings will be held in Hyderabad on May 18–19, Srinagar between June 1–4 and Ladakh on June 8.
WHY EMPLOYEE UNIONS WANT A 5-YEAR PAY COMMISSION
Shiva Gopal Mishra, Secretary (Staff Side), National Council-Joint Consultative Machinery (NC-JCM), told India Today that the current 10-year cycle no longer matches today’s inflation and wage realities.
“The five-year demand for the wage of the government employees should be met. There are many reasons for this,” Mishra said.
He pointed out that many public sector undertakings (PSUs) and banking organisations revise wages every five years.
“All the public undertakings of the government have been arranged for five years. There is a change in wages in all our banking organisations in just five years,” he said.
Mishra also compared the system with the private sector.
“In the private sector, there is a change in wages in just three years. But the government employees have to wait for ten years to increase their wages,” he told India Today.
According to him, inflation is one of the biggest reasons behind the demand.
“If we take it for ten years, then in the ten-year wait, our entire price index will increase a lot. And because of inflation, our wages that are made ten years in advance, instead of being in the original form, they are reduced,” he said.
He added that if salary revision happens every five years, the erosion in real income due to inflation can be controlled.
“If they do this in five years, then the reduction or depreciation will not happen. They will get the same benefit,” Mishra said.
He also said that many sectors already link wages with inflation and index-based revisions.
“Wherever it is happening in five years, that wage is being added to inflation and the index, so that people can benefit from inflation,” he said.
SALARY GROWTH IS VERY SLOW
Dr Manjeet Singh Patel, National President of the All India NPS Employees Federation and National Mission for Old Pension Scheme Bharat, also raised concerns over the long gap between two Pay Commissions.
Speaking to India Today, Patel said government employees see very slow salary growth under the present system.
“For example, if an employee was appointed in January 2016 at the basic salary of Rs 18,000, then after 10 years, the salary becomes only around Rs 37,000. So being only doubled in 10 years is very slow compared to the private sector,” he said.
Patel said employee representatives have requested the commission to consider a shorter revision cycle similar to other sectors.
“We have requested the commission that the Pay Commission should be provided in at least five years, like other sectors,” he told India Today.
He pointed out that the banking sector already follows a five-year wage revision model.
“For example, in the banking sector, the pay commission is received every five years. There are some other corporate sectors, where salaries and pensions are revised quickly,” Patel said.
According to Patel, faster revisions would help government salaries remain competitive.
“If the pay commission is provided within five years, then the salary of the government officials will be able to increase competitively,” he said.
WHY THIS DEMAND MATTERS
The demand is significant because central government salaries are currently revised through Pay Commissions roughly once every 10 years.
While dearness allowance (DA) revisions happen regularly, employee unions argue that DA alone is not enough to fully offset rising costs related to housing, healthcare, education and daily expenses.
Representatives say the long wait between Pay Commissions reduces the real value of salaries over time, especially during periods of high inflation.
GOVERNMENT MAY FACE FISCAL PRESSURE
However, moving to a five-year Pay Commission cycle could also increase the financial burden on the government.
Any revision in central government salaries and pensions has a major fiscal impact, and many state governments also revise pay structures after the Centre.
This means more frequent salary revisions could significantly increase expenditure for both central and state governments.
India Today has been continuously reporting exclusive details from inside the 8th Pay Commission discussions, including the first round of meetings held in Delhi between employee representatives and commission officials.
The demand for a five-year revision cycle now adds another important debate to the larger discussion around salary hikes, pension reforms and inflation-linked pay revision for government employees.
