Fitment Factor 3.68 and Minimum Pay Rs.26000-Is it True?

 Fitment Factor 3.68 and Minimum Pay Rs.26000-Is it True?

Recently Central Government Employees come across a frequent Breaking News in TV Channels and Social Media Platforms about increasing Minimum Pay to Rs.26000 from Rs.18000 and Fitment Factor to 3.68 from 2.57 in 7th pay Commission.

Whether this Govt will increase Minimum pay to Rs.26000 to central govt employees ? Is it possible to change the Fitment factor from 2.57 to 3.68 ? Then How much will it cost the Government exchequer ? How much the salary will increase if Fitment factor is 3.68 ?

So many queries like this are raised after hearing this news about Fitment factor and Minimum pay Increase .

Demand for Minimum Pay Rs.26000

When we sought the clarification from Govt Side and Union/Federation Side, one of the National Council JCM Staff Side Member clarified that there was a demand in their proposal submitted to 7th Pay Commission to fix the Minimum Pay at Rs.26000. The demand for Minimum Pay Rs.26000 was scientifically justified with facts and figures. But the 7th Pay Commission had turned down this demand and fixed minimum Pay as Rs.18000. Though the Joint forum of Unions NJCA opposed this recommendation, it was implemented unilaterally with effect from 1.1.2016.

The Council Member further said that they would welcome the move if any to increase the Minimum Pay to Rs.26000. Because It would be correct and reasonable to set the minimum wage at Rs.26000 to the central govt employees.

But the fact is , after implementation of 7th Pay Commission Minimum Pay Rs.18000 with effect from 1.1.2016, the NCJCM Staff Side in its letter dated 14.8.2017 to Ministry of finance had stated the following

“It is therefore the considered opinion and suggestion of the staff side that the Government must come forward to apply the uniform multiplication factor of 2.81 at all levels both for the construction of the pay levels as also for the pay fixation in the new Pay levels for the existing employees. If our suggestion is accepted, the Minimum wage would be raised to Rs. 19670 with the multiplication factor at 2.81”

But the Official Side has said that the Government had many time clarified in Parliament itself that there is no such proposal to increase the Minimum Pay to 26000 or modify the Fitment factor as 3.68.