8th Pay Commission: Employee organisation demands 3.25 fitment factor and 5% annual increment, says report

8th Pay Commission: As work progresses to establish the basis of the upcoming 8th Pay Commission, central government employee body FNPO (Federation of National Postal Organisation) has sent a letter to the National Council (Joint Consultative Machinery, Staff Side), demanding a multi-level fitment factor and a 5% annual increase among other things, The Economic Times has reported.

The 60-page letter by Sivaji Vasireddy, FNPO secretary general, and member NCJCM (Staff Side), includes recommendations on topics like higher pay scales, pay structure, pay matrix system, annual increments, allowances and promotions among others.

The council is set to hold a meeting with draft committee members after receiving recommendations from central government employee bodies on 15 February, Vasireddy was quoted as saying by ET.

Following the meeting, the NCJCM will make a final draft of the proposals and send it to 8th Pay Commission chairperson Ranjana Prakash Desai.

Here are some of the key 8th Pay Commission proposals made by FNPO in its letter.

Fitment factor

According to the ET report, FNPO has said that the previous pay commissions did not apply the fitment factor consistently at all levels, both by design and necessity. Therefore, it has sought fitment factors ranging from 3.0-3.25 for various central government employee levels based on the Akroyd formula as follows -

• Level 1 to Level 5: Proposed fitment factor – 3.0
• Level 6 to Level 9: Proposed fitment factor – 3.05
• Level 10 to Level 12: Proposed fitment factor – 3.1
• Level 13 to Level 13A: Proposed fitment factor – 3.05
• Level 14 to Level 15: Proposed fitment factor – 3.15
• Level 16: Proposed fitment factor – 3.2
• Level 17 to Level 18: Proposed fitment factor – 3.25

5% annual increment

The FNPO has also sought to do away with the current 3% annual increment trend and replace it with 5% annual increment, as per the ET report. The organisation says it will have several benefits like meaningful financial progression, reduce stagnation-related dissatisfaction among employees and bring government pay structures close to the industry standards.

This will benefit Group C and Group D employees more, where chances of promotions are less as compared to Group A and B level employees. Other factors like Dearness Allowance (DA) and pay commission revisions also increase employee salaries.

7th CPC matrix level

Another request the FNPO has made is for the government to continue with the 7th Pay Commission matrix system, which it says has brought clarity and predictability in pay fixation and progression.