The meeting between the National Council of JCM and the officials at the Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) and the Ministry of Finance (Department of Expenditure) to solve the 7th central Pay Commission matrix issue has been postponed due to the prevailing COVID-19 situation in the country. The meeting was supposed to be held on May 8, 2021, but now will be held in the last week of May 2021.
What is the 7th Central Pay Commission matrix issue?
Earlier in March 2021, the Centre had announced that it would be giving out Dearness Allowance (DA) and Dearness Relief (DR) benefits to central government employees and pensioners from July 1, 2021. The centre had not given any updates regarding the three instalments of DA that are pending from January 1, 2020, July 1, 2020, and January 1, 2020. This has become a major concern for central government servants (CGS).
Once the DA is restored, central government employees' 7th pay commission salary will increase drastically as the promised hike in DA from 17 per cent to 28 per cent will come into effect. However, failure to reach a decision on the three pending DA instalments will lead to a severe hit in central government employees' 7th CPC arrears which are due from January 1, 2020, July 1, 2020, and January 1, 2020. In order to solve this matter, the National Council of JCM and the officials at DoPT and MoF have been in constant touch. Joint Consultative Machinery (JCM) is a platform for dialogue between the representatives of the staff side and the official side for resolution of all disputes between the Government as the employer and the employees.
Meeting to discuss 7th Central Pay Commission matrix issue postponed
Discussing the postponement of the meeting, Shiva Gopal Mishra, Secretary, Staff Side at National council of JCM said, "The National Council of JCM, DoPT and Ministry of Finance officials are in regular touch to resolve the matter of three instalments of DA payable to the central government employees. In fact, the central government officials are quite co-operative in regard to the DA instalment payment. A joint meeting of the DoPT, Ministry of Finance and JCM was scheduled on 8th May 2021 but due to the Covid-19 crisis, the meeting has been extended to the last week of May 2021."
Mishra explained what would be the agenda of this meeting. He said, "Payment of three instalments of DA would be one of the major agendas of this meeting. The JCM has informed the concerned officials that if it is difficult for the center to pay three instalments of DA in one time, they can pay the central government employees' arrears through partial payments as well."
Payment of the three pending DA instalments would benefit nearly 50 lakh employees and over 60 lakh pensioners.
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