8th Pay Commission: Fitment Factor Of 2.86 Expected For Salary Revision, Says Key JCM Member

As expectations grow over an announcement related to the 8th Pay Commission, the employee forum that will be involved in the negotiations has its sight set on the fitment factor.

Fitment factor is the multiplication unit used for revising the basic salary and pension of government employees and retirees, respectively.

Shiv Gopal Mishra, the secretary (staff side) of the National Council of Joint Consultative Machinery or JCM, said a fitment factor of "at least 2.86" is expected for the next set of revision in salaries and pensions.

"We are looking at a fitment factor of 2.86 at least, considering that this kind of revision happens only once in 10 years. This is what we will demand after the 8th Pay Commission is formed," Mishra told NDTV Profit.

The statement assumes significance as Mishra is the staff side chief of the National Council of JCM—an official platform comprising bureaucrats and employee union leaders. Chaired by the Union Secretary, the NC-JCM aims at resolving all disputes between the government and employees through dialogue.

Considering the pace of inflation, "we certainly expect that the fitment factor to be recommended by the 8th Pay Commission will be higher than what was recommended by the last pay commission," Mishra said.

The 7th Pay Commission had recommended a fitment factor of 2.57. This raised the minimum salary of central government employees to Rs 17,990 from Rs 7,000.

If 2.86 is recommended as the fitment factor by the 8th Pay Commission, then the minimum salary of employees can rise from Rs 17,990 to Rs 51,451.

Commenting on news reports which claim that the minimum salary could be raised up to Rs 34,000-Rs 35,000, Mishra said, "There is no basis for such claims. These could be individual demand of some trade unions, but as far as the staff side of the NC-JCM goes, we will demand a certain fitment factor. And that will not be less than 2.86."

No Clarity On Date Of Formation

There is no official word yet on the formation of 8th Pay Commission. Generally, the pay panels are formed once in 10 years to revise the salaries and pensions of central government employees and retirees.

The last pay panel—the 7th Pay Commission—was formed by the then Manmohan Singh-led government in February 2014. Its recommendations came into effect from January 2016.

The formation of pay commission is seen as the first concrete step towards the revision of employees' basic salaries. After the commission is constituted, it is tasked with meeting all the stakeholders and presenting a report before the government.

As compared to the 7th Pay Commission, the date of formation of 8th Pay Commission has already been delayed. However, such a comparison should not be made as the 7th pay panel was announced as part of a pre-election budget, said senior bureaucrat TV Somanathan, while speaking to NDTV India in July. "What happened in 2014 was unusual," he said.

Mishra, on being asked whether the formation of 8th Pay Commission has been significantly delayed, said, "The date of its implementation will be more important than the date of formation."

"As far as I know, no government can deny the revision of salaries after 10 years. The last wage hike came into effect on Jan. 1, 2016. I am confident that the next revision will come into effect from Jan. 1, 2026," said Mishra, who is also the secretary general of the All India Railwaymen's Federation.