In an attempt to lessen the impact of inflation, the government is considering raising salaries by 5 to 15 per cent in the upcoming fiscal year’s budget, according to The News, following the Pay and Pension Commission’s inability to submit a report ahead of the next budget, which led to the prime minister’s decision to grant another extension.
The deadline for submitting the Commission’s recommendation is being extended to June 30, 2022, as per a statement released by the Finance Division.
According to top official sources, the former PTI-led government gave a 15 per cent allowance to officials in grades 1 to 19, effective March 1, 2022.
The new Shehbaz Sharif-led administration, on the other hand, pledged a 10 per cent rise in the pension and a 25,000-per-month minimum wage.
A Finance Ministry official stated that in the future budget, pay for grades 1 to 19 may be boosted by another 5-10 per cent as an adhoc allowance. Employees in grades 20 to 22 could see a pay raise of 10 per cent to 15 per cent.
In addition, due to increased inflationary pressures, the government may boost pensions by 5-10 per cent. The Regulation Wing of the Ministry of Finance has completed its internal work in this regard. It was also resolved to form a Pay and Pension Commission, which would make recommendations.
The commission was established by the PTI-led government in April 2020, and its chairman was former Secretary of Finance Abdul Wajid Rana. He resigned, however, and former bureaucrat Nargis Sethi was named Chairperson of the Pay and Pension Commission. She later quit as well.
The Pay and Pension Commission was then chaired by Zafar Ahmed Khan, who was chosen by the government. So far, the commission has requested two extensions but has yet to present its recommendations.
The text box was included in the Pay and Pension Commission’s terms of reference, which included studying the adequacy of the existing basic pay scale system and evaluating the current salaries of government employees.
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It also includes making recommendations for streamlining existing classification from BPS 1-22, studying the separation of existing basic pay scales for dedicated departments, occupations/cadres, reviewing special scales such as management grades, management position scales (MP Scales), special professional pay scales (SPPS); project pay scales, and proposing measures for uniformity and improvement, reviewing admissible regular allowances, special incentives, and all other supplementary pay scales.
The panel was tasked with identifying current shortcomings in the Pension Scheme and making recommendations for a corrective revision along with ensuring the current model’s long-term viability and recommending a system with clear timelines that is more efficient and sustainable given the available resources.
