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The murmur regarding the 8th Pay Commission for Central Government employees and pensioners has intensified. Recently, an important meeting of the 8th Pay Commission (Stakeholder Consultations) was held in Kolkata on July 10, 2026, in which various central employees organizations, railway unions and pensioners associations put forward their strong demands before the Commission.
After this meeting, the biggest discussion is about the benefits given to Level-1 (Group C & D) employees. In this era of inflation, employee organizations have raised the demand for major changes in the rules of salary, house rent allowance (HRA), minimum pension and time bound promotion i.e. MACP.
Let us know what are the demands of employee organizations regarding these major issues and how much the salary picture can change after this.
1. Demand on basic pay and fitment factor
Under the 7th Pay Commission (7th CPC), at present the minimum basic salary of Level-1 employees is ₹ 18,000 per month. The biggest debate before the 8th Pay Commission is regarding the ‘fitment factor’ i.e. the multiplier on the basis of which the basic pay is decided.
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Demand of employees: Unions say that the minimum fitment factor should be increased to at least between 2.1 to 3.0.
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How much will the salary increase: If the government considers the minimum fitment factor of 2.1, then the minimum basic salary of Level-1 employees will directly increase to ₹ 37,800. Whereas if it is increased to 2.5 or 3.0, then this basic pay can reach ₹ 45,000 and ₹ 54,000 respectively. Generally, experts estimate that this minimum basic salary can easily be set between ₹ 34,500 to ₹ 37,800.
2. Demand for major changes in House Rent Allowance (HRA)
In view of the continuously increasing house rents in big cities, employee organizations have termed the existing slab of HRA as inadequate.
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Current system: Currently, HRA is being given to cities at the rate of 30%, 20% and 10% by dividing them into X, Y, Z categories.
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New proposal of unions: Big unions like All India Defense Employees Federation (AIDEF) and Railway Technical Employees Organizations (IRTSA) have demanded that in the 8th Pay Commission, HRA should be increased to 40% (for X cities), 35% (for Y cities) and 30% (for Z cities). Along with this, there has been a demand to link it with the increase in Dearness Allowance (DA) and to give it to pensioners also.
3. Expectation of big relief regarding pension
In the 7th Pay Commission, the minimum pension for central employees was fixed at ₹ 9,000.
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Increase in pension: After the implementation of the fitment factor in the 8th Pay Commission, the monthly pension of minimum pensioners is expected to increase to around ₹ 20,000 to ₹ 25,000.
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Review of UPS and NPS: Additionally, according to the Government Gazette, the Commission has also been asked to review the death-cum-retirement gratuity benefits available under the recently announced Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) and National Pension System (NPS) so that employees can get social security after retirement.
4. Voice of improvement in MACP (Modified Assured Career Progression)
MACP is a scheme under which if an employee is not promoted for a long time, then he is given financial upgradation i.e. salary hike from time to time (on 10, 20 and 30 years of service).
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Unions’ objection: Employees say that the long wait of 10 years is too much, which especially lowers the morale of Level-1 and lower level employees.
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What is the demand: Organizations have demanded that in the 8th Pay Commission, this 10 year time limit should be reduced to 5 or 7 years, so that the employees can get financial benefits in the initial and middle phase of their career.
When will the 8th Pay Commission be implemented?
The central government constituted the 8th Pay Commission in November 2025 and has been given 18 months time to submit its final report, which is due to be completed in May-June 2027. However, if the government implements its recommendations backdated like previous traditions, then it will be considered effective from January 1, 2026 only (Retrospective Effect). This means that whenever this comes into effect, the employees will be paid arrears from January 1, 2026.