The Hindu : Opinion / Letters to the Editor : Pay Commission

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Friday, Mar 28, 2008
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Opinion - Letters to the Editor

Pay Commission

The Sixth Pay Commission recommendations for Central government employees are a mixed bag. Overall, the report is balanced. But the question is: how many of the recommendations will be accepted by the government and how many will be diluted or discarded under pressure from trade unions? Introduction of running pay bands, fixing the annual increment at 2.5 per cent, and enhanced maternity leave for women will be acceptable to all. But surely there will be resistance to linking additional increment to performance, reduction of holidays, etc. In the overall interest of the nation, the government should accept the report in toto.

K.V. Ravindran,

Payyanur

* * *

The pay hike was most required in the defence services. Nearly 1,000 officers leave the force every year because of unsound economic condition and work hours. But defence personnel never crib about what the government offers them. It is their dignity, pride and self-respect that drive them to be contended.

Aniket Singh,

Mohali

* * *

Yes, the hike is 40 per cent at the highest end of the pre-revised pay scale. But the real hike in pay comes through the so-called fixation benefit that is added to the merged pay and Dearness Allowance. If one calculates the hike on this basis, it hovers around 20 per cent or less. If a fanciful percentage is what the Commission intended to give, it could have taken the annual increment as the basis and claimed that it had granted 800 per cent increase.

D. Darwin Albert Raj,

Kalpakkam

* * *

It is ironical that the Commission, which avers that the government’s performance is measured not in terms of profit but in terms of achieving social goals, has hiked the salary of top officials while blatantly neglecting low-paid employees.

N. Sadasivan Pillai,

Guntakal

* * *

Narrowing the salary gap between employees of the government and the private sector by effecting pay hikes will be rendered meaningless if the gap between the earning capacity of the workforce in the unorganised and organised sectors is not bridged. It is a pity that the unorganised sector is left uncared for just because there are no pressure groups to represent it.

R. Ponnarassi,

Vellore

* * *

The recommendations were made only after an exhaustive study of the existing pay structures and the increase needed to sustain a decent standard of living. It has become customary to speak of the plight of workers in the unorganised sector only when there is a proposal to hike the salaries of government employees. The poor pay in the unorganised sector is due to the state’s failure to ensure minimum wages and working conditions.

N. Sekar,

Salem

* * *

While government employees enjoy privileges such as fixed working hours, plenty of leave benefits under various categories, leave encashment, guaranteed salary increases by way of regular DA revision, annual increments not related to performance, reservation in promotion for certain groups, and very little or no accountability, the situation in the private sector is in complete contrast. In many enterprises, persons with the same or even higher qualifications than those in the government institutions are reeling under heavier workload and getting lower emoluments. Therefore, there is no case for comparing the salaries proposed by the Commission with those being paid in a few private companies.

K.N. Ramani,

Coimbatore

* * *

While implementing the recommendations of every Pay Commission on upward revision of salaries, the government does not even consider its other valuable suggestions.

The Fifth Pay Commission’s recommendations for 30 per cent reduction in government jobs over 10 years, streamlining the administrative structure, increasing productivity and downsizing the huge number of post of secretaries are a case in point. While revising the pay scales, measures should also be taken to improve efficiency.

S. Nallasivan,

Tirunelveli

* * *

Some readers have pointed out that limiting the number of holidays is a welcome measure. If government servants have 20 holidays a year, it is not because they want a holiday culture, but because the government wants its workforce to celebrate the festivals of all communities. If one goes to a government colony, one can see Muslims celebrate Holi with as much fervour as do their Hindu neighbours. The Pay Commission’s proposal to scrap national festivals as holidays and restrict them to three in a year is a step backwards. If the government rejects this recommendation, it won’t be out of vote bank considerations but because it believes in the foresight of Nehru and Patel.

Shaan Menon,

Palakkad

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