8th Pay Commission: Merger of pay scales proposed by NC-JCM Staff Side; check salary impact

The Staff Side of the National Council - JCM for Central Government employees recently submitted its memorandum to the 8th Central Pay Commission (CPC), suggesting the merger of multiple existing pay scales and applying a fitment factor of 3.833 for the deciding minimum salary hike at each scale. Here's a lowdown on the merger suggested by the Staff Side.

Currently, there are 17 pay scales, termed Level 1 to Level 17. The Staff Side has suggested the merger of the following pay levels:

1. Merger of Level 2 and Level 3 into one pay scale at Level 3.

2. Merger of Level 4 and Level 5 into one pay scale at Level 5.

3. Merger of Level 7 and Level 8 into one pay scale at Level 8.

4. Merger of Level 9 and Level 10 into one pay scale at Level 10.

5. Merger of Level 5 into Level 6 as a one-time measure.

In addition to the above, the Staff Side has recommended a fitment factor of 3.833, raising the minimum salary at Level 1 to ₹69,000. It also submitted the table below showing standardised pay scales along with expected salary impact after the proposed merger:

Please note that the above suggestions have not yet been accepted by the 8th CPC.

The Pay Commission is currently receiving suggestions/memorandums from various stakeholders, including employees' and pensioners' bodies. The final decision of the Pay Commission will be known only after its recommendations are made public. This, however, may take several months from now.