8th Pay Commission: Salary Hike Must Be Effective January 2026 Despite Rollout Delay, Says JCM Leader

The hike in salaries and pensions of central government employees and retirees must come into effect from January 2026, despite the delay in its rollout, said Shiv Gopal Mishra, secretary, staff side of the National Council-Joint Consultative Machinery, while speaking to NDTV Profit.

The NC-JCM, notably, is an official body comprising senior bureaucrats and recognised employee union leaders. It will be at the forefront of deliberations with the 8th Pay Commission after it gets formally constituted.

Mishra, as the chief of the staff-side of NC-JCM, had also led the negotiations on behalf of the employee forum with the 7th Pay Commission. Recounting his experience, he believes that the effective date of salary hike cannot be delayed beyond a period of 10 years.

Since the 7th Pay Commission effectively came into effect on Jan. 1, 2016, then the 8th Pay Commission will have to effectively come into effect from Jan. 1, 2026, he explained.

So, will the revised salaries and pensions be credited in January 2026? No, that seems unlikely as the 8th Pay Commission is yet to be formally set up. However, what Mishra said is that the hike will come into effect retrospectively.

"The process is likely to take time. The commission will be set up and hold deliberations with the stakeholders and then submit its recommendations. Then it will be approved by the government... What we are saying is that irrespective of the delay, the effective date of salary hike must be Jan. 1, 2026," said Mishra, who is also the general secretary of the All India Railwaymen's Federation.

Citing the example of the 7th Pay Commission, Mishra recalled that the salary hike was then rolled out from July 1, 2016, but the employees were paid arrears for six months starting January 2016. "Similarly, the employees should get arrears this time as well."

Pay commissions, notably, are formed once in a decade to revise the salaries and pensions. As per the precedent, the pay panels require around 18 months to submit their recommendations, which are then scrutinised by around three-nine months by the government before issuing the final nod.

The decision to form the 8th Pay Commission received the Union Cabinet's greenlight in January, but the panel is yet to be set up. Employee union leaders await the Centre's clearance for the terms of reference, which will serve as the broad framework for the commission.

Mishra believes the nod for the Terms of Reference, or ToR, "should be issued soon" by the government. The staff side of NC-JCM already forwarded its recommendations for the ToR to the government in January.

Once the 8th Pay Commission is formally constituted, it will hold discussions with NC-JCM, along with other stakeholders, before proposing the fitment factor and other modalities for the revision of salaries and pensions.

In recent days, brokerages have indicated that the fitment factor to be recommended may range between 1.8 to 2.46. While the fitment factor is the multiplication unit used for salary revision—it is multiplied directly with the basic wage—the effective salary hike is lower as the dearness allowance is reset to zero once the fresh pay commission comes into effect.