Unions to protest strongly against Pay Commission report on minimum pay

New Delhi: Trade unions and central government employees associations are up in arms over the Seventh Pay Commission’s proposal on minimum pay of central government employees.

The trade unions, including all central government employees associations, are planning to protest strongly against the proposals before the government.

The unions and associations have disagreed with the Seventh Pay Commission overall recommendation of minimum pay and should be increased from Rs 18,000 per month to Rs 26,000, they demanded.

In the Seventh Pay Commission report, the Pay Commission recommended fixing the minimum pay Rs 18,000 per month from current Rs 7,000. The trade unions and associations argued that the proposed rise was inadequate.

They contended that minimum pay to increase of Rs 10,250 , which would bring the minimum pay to 26,000, was “reasonable and proportionate”.

Now A lowest paid central government employee, who was appointed in the Grade Pay of Rs 1800. He gest minimum pay Rs.15,750 in existing pay rules.

Illustration- Minimum Pay = Pay Band Rs 5200 + Grade Pay Rs 1800 + Expected DA of 125%, Rs 8750 = Rs. 15750.

A trade union leader said in his statement that Rs 2250 increase, as proposed by the commission, did not go far enough to address the minimum pay of central government employees.

He urged the high-level Empowered Committee of Secretaries that the minimum pay should be increased to 26,000 from Rs 7,000 as inflation figures that showed price rises had huge picked up from 2008 to 2016.

The high-level Empowered Committee of Secretaries headed by Cabinet Secretary P K Sinha, was set up to examine the such type of issues related to the Seventh Pay Commission report.

The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) asked the Empowered Committee of Secretaries to process the review of the Seventh Pay Commission recommendations as soon as possible for taking cabinet nod after the budget and Finance Ministry Arun Jaitley had said that budget for the next fiscal needs to provide Rs 1.10 lakh crore for implementing the Seventh Pay Commission.

Hence, the unions and associations leaders are ready to put up their demand before the committee for hike minimum pay of central government employees.

The Seventh Pay Commission headed by Justice A K Mathur presented its report to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in November with a recommendation for raising minimum pay to Rs 18,000 per month from current Rs 7,000 while the maximum pay, drawn by the Cabinet Secretary, has been fixed at Rs 2.5 lakh per month from current Rs 90,000. For the Secretaries it has been fixed at Rs 2.25 lakh as against Rs 80,000 currently.

The panel recommended a 14.27 per cent increase in basic pay, the lowest in 70 years. The overall increase in salary, allowances and pensions is 23.55%. The increase in allowances will be higher by 63% while pensions will rise 24%.

The previous Sixth Pay Commission had recommended a 20 per cent basic pay hike of central government employees, which the the secretary-level committee on that time recommended for 40 per cent basic pay hike .

Accordingly, the government doubled while implementing it in 2008.

Source :  http://www.tkbsen.in/2016/02/unions-to-protest-strongly-against-pay-commission-report-on-minimum-pay/