Express News Service
NEW DELHI: While the central government has decided to keep the salary of mid and senior level central government employees unchanged, it is considering a proposal to raise the salary of all central government employees whose pay falls within pay matrix level 5.
“The government is considering a proposal to raise the salary of all central government employees up to pay matrix level 5, beyond the 7th Pay Commission’s recommendation,” said a senior official in the finance ministry on the condition of anonymity.
He, however, refused to divulge any further details on what the quantum of the increase will be. “The government is working on the numbers and also on the burden to the exchequer. It is not finalised yet; however, it will be close to the demands of the union. There will be more clarity on it in the next few weeks,” the official said.
The salary of mid level and senior level will remain unchanged.
“There will be no change in salaries of employees above pay matrix level 5. The ministry is of the view that they have already got a good hike in the seventh pay commission recommendations,” the senior official added.
The 7th Pay Commission had recommended a hike of 14.27 per cent in basic pay of central government employees, raising minimum pay from Rs 7,000 to Rs 18,000 a month.
Following the recommendations of the 7th pay commission in June 2016, central government employees get a minimum pay of Rs 18,000 a month while the maximum pay is Rs 2.5 lakh per month.
Central government employees’ unions, which were unhappy with the Pay Commission recommendations, had demanded that the minimum pay be raised to Rs 26,000 instead of Rs 18,000 and the upper limit be raised to Rs 3.25 lakh a month. They had also threatened to go on an indefinite strike over pay hike on July 11, 2016.
The strike was called off after finance minister Arun Jaitley assured the unions that the government would consider salary hike after discussions with all stakeholders. Various reports have suggested that in future, the government will do away with pay commissions and look at an alternative way to revise future salaries and allowances of central staff and pensioners.
