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Expectations among central government employees regarding the 8th Pay Commission continue to rise. Amidst this, the Jammu & Kashmir Employees Federation has demanded that the minimum basic salary be fixed at ₹55,000. During a meeting with Commission officials in Srinagar, the employees' organization also proposed implementing a fitment factor of 3.05.

In a memorandum submitted to the Commission, Federation President Rafiq Malik stated that the current salary structure fails to fully meet the actual needs of employees and their families. Therefore, new standards should be adopted for salary determination.

**Demand for a ₹55,000 Salary**
The employees' organization has presented a new formula for determining the minimum wage. While the 7th Pay Commission based salary calculations on three family units, the organization has recommended basing them on five family units—comprising the employee, their spouse, two children, and parents.

According to the organization, a basic salary of ₹30,000 is derived by calculating ₹6,000 per unit for five units. Adding the current 58% Dearness Allowance (DA) brings this figure to ₹47,400. Furthermore, factoring in a 20% to 25% increase in costs related to food, nutrition, and other consumption needs raises the amount to between ₹56,880 and ₹59,250. Based on this, the organization has recommended setting the minimum basic salary between ₹55,000 and ₹60,000.

**Demand to Increase Annual Increment from 3% to 6%**
The Federation argues that the current 3% annual salary increment does not lead to a sufficient rise in employees' real income. Therefore, the 8th Pay Commission should consider raising the annual increment to 6%. This would allow employees' income to keep pace with inflation.

**Proposal to Change DA and HRA Rules**
The organization has also demanded changes to the current method of calculating the Dearness Allowance (DA). They argue that the full benefit of the Dearness Allowance (DA) should be provided based on the actual increase, rather than by rounding down decimal figures during calculation.

Additionally, it has been suggested that the DA threshold for increasing House Rent Allowance (HRA) be lowered from 50 percent to 25 percent. The organization holds the view that once DA reaches 50 percent, it should be merged with the basic salary, and new HRA rates should be implemented thereafter.

**Demand for OPS and Hard Zone Allowance**
The employees' federation has reiterated its demand to abolish the National Pension System (NPS) and restore the Old Pension Scheme (OPS). Furthermore, they have proposed an additional "Hard Zone Allowance" equivalent to 10 percent of the basic salary for employees working in remote and difficult areas.

Employee organizations believe that if these suggestions are incorporated into the 8th Pay Commission, it could yield significant benefits for lakhs of central government employees and pensioners.

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