Source: http://fnpohq.blogspot.in/
Monday, 30 November 2015
Squeeze on salary increases of central government employees by 7th CPC
Source: http://fnpohq.blogspot.in/
Central Govt staff protest against pay panel recommendations
The Central Government employees on Friday protested
against the Seventh Pay Commission and observed a black day.
Shiva Gopal Mishra, General Secretary, All India
Railwaymen’s Federation and Convener, NJCA, said “almost all the Central
Government employees have joined today’s (Friday) protests and have pledged for
sustained struggle”.
He further said, “If the Central Government does not remove
retrograde recommendations of the VII CPC and resolve long-pending genuine
demands of the employees, more than 30 lakh employees working in the Railways,
Defence, Postal and other Central Government Organisations, will be forced to
go for indefinite strike”.
Against the demand for a minimum wage of ₹26,000, the
commission has recommended ₹18,000, thereby widening the gap between minimum
and maximum wage.
Additionally, the present rate of house rent allowance — of
30, 20 and 10 per cent — has been reduced to 24, 16 and 8 per cent
respectively.
The Pay Commission has also refused to make any
recommendation against the New Pension Scheme. In case of Child Care Leave
(CCL) for women employees, leave wage shall be reduced to 80 per cent for
second spell of 365 days CCL.
Meanwhile, there is also a demand by the National
Federation of Indian Railwaymen for better facilities for railway employees who
are exposed to riskier working conditions.
SOURCE - thehindubusinessline
Saturday, 28 November 2015
LUNCH HOUR DEMONSTRATION.
As per the
directions on NJCA, Lunch hour demonstration was held at the CPMG office premises
on 27/11/2015 from 13.00 Hrs. to 14.00 Hrs. by FNPO Co-ordinating Committee Tamilnadu Circle.
It was presided by Shri. P.Kumar, Circle Secretary,R-3 to observe a "BLACK DAY" and to protest the
retrograde recommendation of 7th CPC. The recommendations which were not favorable
to the employees were explained by the following Secretaries of FNPO, Shri.
S.Noor Ahamed, Ex-General Secretary,R-4,Shri. K.Gunasekar, Ex-Circe Secretary,
P-4, Shri. Sridaran, Circle Secretary,R-4, Shri. G.Antony, Electrical &
Civil Wing, Shri. Sultan, South Division Secretary,P-3 and Shri. Gunasekar,
Circle Secretary,A-3. Shri. Kesavan, Central Division Secretary,P-4, concluded
the demonstration after thanking to the participants.
7th Pay Panel Proposals A Gimmick: Narayanasamy
PUDUCHERRY:
Terming the recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission for Central government
employees as a “gimmick”, AICC general secretary and former union minister V
Narayanasamy said the employees will get no benefits if the recommendations
were implemented.
In a
statement here on Thursday, Narayanasamy said the recommendations has projected
a hike of 23.55 per cent.
He said
the 6th Pay Commission recommendations in 2006, implemented by the previous
Congress regime led by Manmohan Singh, had suggested 30 per cent increase,
while the current panel recommended 6.5 per cent less for the employees.
The
dearness allowance, which was fixed half yearly, has been made annual; house
rent allowance was reduced by two per cent for B-class cities and interest for
vehicle as well as housing loans has been made equal to bank interest, he said.
Grade pay has been abolished and risk allowance has been
withdrawn, he said, and added that the dearness allowance will be merged and
will go back to the base point.
He said
if the recommendations were accepted, they would serve as an act of punishment
of the Central government and Puducherry government employees.
The
former Union Minister urged the Puducherry administration to write to the
Centre and register its opposition in removing all the benefits of concessions
to the employees in the Pay Commission recommendation and ensure that it should
be beneficial to the Puducherry government employees.
Narayanasamy
claimed that hundreds of low level government employees met him and expressed
concern that if the recommendations were implemented in Puducherry, the state
government employees will be affected.
Despite
the demand from the employees to announce Rs 26,000 as minimum salary, reducing
it to Rs 18,000 could not be accepted, he said.
Narayanasamy
said the employees will have no benefits if the panel recommendations were
implemented.
Source: New Indian Express
Thursday, 26 November 2015
National Pension System (NPS) related recommended in 7th Pay Commission
National Pension System
Introduction
10.3.1
Pension has been one of the key Terms of Reference (TORs) for successive Pay
Commissions. While the VI CPC was the first Pay Commission to have been
constituted after the introduction of the National Pension System (NPS) which
came into effect on 01.01.2004, the VII CPC is the first one to be constituted
after some experience has been gained on this count.
Pension
Related TOR of the Commission
10.3.2
The TOR of the present Commission – to examine the principles which should
govern the structure of pension and other retirement benefits, keeping in view
that retirement benefits of all Central Government employees appointed on and
after 01.01.2004 are covered by the National Pension System (NPS)–limits the
mandate of this Commission only to the Old Pension System (OPS). However,
during its interaction with staff associations and other stakeholders, the
Commission received many grievances/suggestions relating to both the OPS and
the NPS. It has also been averred, inter alia, that NPS is proving to be an
impediment in attracting and subsequently retaining the best talent for the
Central Civil Services/All India Services (AIS). In this backdrop, the
Commission decided to address the grievances related to NPS, which have been
discussed in this chapter. Issues relating to OPS and other retirement benefits
have been dealt in Chapter 10.1 and Chapter 10.2.
NPS
Background
10.3.3
The Commission notes that the NPS is the culmination of a series of social
security and pension related reform initiatives in India. As in many other
countries, pension reforms in India were driven by the fiscal constraints of
supporting a public pension system and the longer-term problems of an ageing
population. Government of India, in 1998, set up the Committee for Old Age
Social and Income Security (OASIS). The OASIS committee concluded, among other
things, that the Defined Benefit Scheme (DBS), serving the Central Government
retirees, is unaffordable for government and it should be replaced by a Defined
Contribution Scheme (DCS).
10.3.4
The Commission notes that the total pension liability on account of Central
Government employees had risen from 0.6 percent of GDP (at constant prices) in
1993-94 to 1.66 percent of GDP (at constant prices) in 2002-03. Pension
expenditure of the Central Government grew at a compound annual growth rate
(CAGR) of 21 percent during the period 1990 to 2001. This was also reflected in
the increasing fiscal deficits. Further, in the DBS, pensions were wage
indexed, and thus the outgo on this account would have increased manifold. The
stressed fiscal situation, thus, set the stage for introduction of the NPS in
India. The Bhattacharya Committee Report (HLE Group on NPS) (Feb 2002)
recommended that an unfunded Defined Benefit (DB), Pay As You Go (PAYG) scheme
or a pure Defined Contribution (DC) scheme would not be suitable and therefore
recommended a hybrid DB/DC scheme to meet the requirements of central civil
servants.
International
Experience on Pension Reforms
10.3.5
Pension reforms, in recent times, have been initiated in many countries across
the world. The Commission notes that an aging population, changing social structures,
uncertain and inadequate social security benefits and rising fiscal liabilities
have been the major causes behind pension reforms, especially for a transition
from DBS to DCS.
Introduction
of NPS
10.3.6
On the basis of various reports, the Central Government made the decision to
place all new recruits into Central Government from 01.01.2004 onwards
(excluding Defence Forces) under NPS. NPS is managed by the Pension Fund
Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA), which was initially set up as an interim
authority. The PFRDA Act was passed by Parliament and notified w.e.f.
01.02.2014, bestowing statutory status on the authority.
NPS
Features
10.3.7
Under the NPS, employees contribute 10 percent of their monthly salary (basic
plus DA) towards their pension with matching contribution from Central
Government. In respect of the AIS officers working under them, the matching
contribution is made by the State Governments. Three professional Pension Fund
Managers invest the funds under NPS following an asset allocation framework
mandated by government. The Central Record Keeping Agency (CRA) maintains a
separate pension account for each individual employee identified by a unique
Permanent Retirement Account Number (PRAN). Individual employees have been given
online access through the CRA website to view the status of their pension
wealth.
10.3.8
Under the NPS, upon superannuation, the individual is required to invest at
least 40 percent of pension wealth for purchase of annuity and the remaining up
to 60 percent is paid to him as lump sum. The annuity provides for pension for
the lifetime of the employee.
Individual
subscribers to the NPS are not covered under the General Provident Fund.
Regulations
issued by the PFRDA now provide for partial withdrawals up to 25 percent of the
contribution made by the subscriber to his individual account after at least
ten years from the date of joining, up to a maximum of three times during the
tenure of the subscription for certain specified purposes, before
superannuation. The regulations issued by PFRDA also provide that if the
employee dies in service, then at least 80 percent of the accumulated pension
wealth shall be mandatorily utilized for purchase of annuity and the balance
amount would be paid to the nominee(s)/legal heirs
Performance
of the NPS
10.3.9
Over 13 lakh Central Government subscribers have accumulated pension wealth of
over ₹24,000 crore by the end of 2013-14. The Compound Annual Growth Rate
(CAGR) of returns on the scheme are tabulated below:-
Year
|
2008-09
|
2009-10
|
2010-11
|
2011-12
|
2012-13
|
2013-14
|
2014-15
|
CAGE(Central Govt)
|
12.02
|
12.06
|
10.72
|
9.41
|
9.95
|
9.10
|
9.11
|
10.3.10
The Commission further notes that all State Governments (with the exception of
Tripura and West Bengal) have switched to NPS on the Central Government
pattern.
Grievances
against the NPS
10.3.11
The NPS has now been in effect for over 10 years. During this period, there has
been perceptible progress in putting together the architecture and providing information
to subscribers. Major concerns, however, remain. Broadly, these are as under:
i.
The larger federations and staff associations advocated scrapping the NPS on
the ground that it discriminates between two sets of government employees.
ii.
Individuals covered under NPS have pleaded for reverting to the OPS on the
grounds of uncertainty regarding the actual value of their future pension in
the face of market related risks.
iii.
Individuals have pointed out that under NPS, the effective salary becomes less
since the employee has to mandatorily contribute 10 percent of pay towards the
pension fund.
iv.
Individuals have stated that grievance redressal facility is not effective and
consultation with stakeholders has been non-existent. This communication gap
has generated insecurity in the minds of stakeholders including staff and Group
‘A’ officers of Central Government as well as All India Service Officers.
v.
Associations have complained that Family Pension after the death of the
employee is not ensured in the NPS. Moreover, if an employee dies at an early
age, the family would suffer since annuity from the contribution would be
grossly inadequate.
vi.
Individuals have complained that NPS subscribers have no recourse to GPF for
their savings. Their personal savings (10% of salary) are considered part of a
larger corpus. It has been pointed out that the right approach would be to
consider only government’s contribution and the returns earned on it as the
effective amount available for purchase of annuities.
vii.
Associations have pointed out that unlike the facility under GPF, it is not
possible to take refundable advances under NPS, even to meet obligatory social
expenditure. This forces employees towards increased indebtedness as they have
to borrow from elsewhere.
viii.
Grievances also relate to tax treatment under NPS. While contributions and
accumulations in NPS are exempt, lump sum withdrawals from NPS at any time
are taxable at par with any other income. In addition, there is a service
tax liability on any amount utilised for purchase of annuity.
ix.
It has been pointed out that though NPS became effective from 2004, detailed
instructions were issued only in late 2009 and in many cases the credit of
contributions began from 2012. In the case of AIS officers in some States,
contributions by the concerned State Government are yet to be fully made and
deployed. The net result of this has been that contributions for the period
2004-2012 have not been made in full or have earned simple interest and did not
get any market linked returns. Because of the prevailing confusion,
contributions made by some AIS officer have been returned to them without
interest. This will have a huge impact on the eventual corpus as the benefits
of compounding were not available for the first 8 -9 years.
x.
Individuals, in their presentation before the Commission, stated that annuities
under NPS have no compensation for inflation unlike dearness relief under OPS.
Further, in the case of OPS there is a revision in basic pension itself after
every Pay Commission. This too is not available in respect of annuity of NPS
subscribers.
xi.
It has been pointed out that government employees are not given freedom of
choice in choosing their fund manager based on performance and track record as
the contributions are divided in a pre-specified ratio among selected Pension
Fund Managers. It has been stated that government employees have no say in
asset allocation
of their money.
of their money.
xii.
Concerns were raised that the contribution of 10% + 10% will not be sufficient
to create a corpus which provides reasonable assurance that pension will be 50
percent of the last pay drawn.
Analysis
of the Issues by the Commission
10.3.12
The Commission has examined these concerns raised by the stakeholders. The
Commission also interacted with Chairman, PFRDA, and representatives of the
Department of Pensions and Pensioners Welfare (DPPW), Department of Personnel
and Training (DoPT), Department of Expenditure (DoE) and the Department of
Financial Services (DFS).
10.3.13
In so far as the future value of pension under NPS is concerned, the Commission
notes that this would depend upon a combination of factors:
(i)
performance of the invested fund, which in turn would depend on the asset mix
of the investment and general economic situation of the country,
(ii) cost of financial intermediation,
(iii) contribution rates,
(iv) period of contribution,
(v) performance of the fund manager and
(vi) development of the annuity market.
(ii) cost of financial intermediation,
(iii) contribution rates,
(iv) period of contribution,
(v) performance of the fund manager and
(vi) development of the annuity market.
Analysis
of the Asset Mix of Investments
10.3.14
On asset mix of the investment, the pension funds, the world over, are invested
in different assets including government and corporate bonds, equities, foreign
securities etc. government bonds are generally the lowest risk and lowest
yield. Corporate bonds and equities are higher risk and higher yield.
Typically, systems use a mix of at least two types of assets–
Government
Bonds and Corporate Bonds/Equities.
10.3.15
As per the investment guidelines stipulated by the government for Central
Government employees under NPS, up to 55 percent can be invested in government
bonds, up to 40 percent in corporate debt securities, up to 15 percent in
equities and up to 5 percent in money market instruments. International
experiences on asset mix vary across countries which have adopted the DCS.
10.3.16
The Commission notes that an innovative approach to investment under the DCS is
the Life Cycle Approach. Under this, the asset mix of each individual changes
based on his/her age. The underlying assumption under this approach is that
younger workers are better able to absorb year on year volatility and therefore
can undertake risk while older workers should reduce risk as they approach
retirement.
10.3.17
A carefully selected asset mix is the sine qua non to higher returns. The
Commission recommends that the investment choices under NPS be calibrated on a
life cycle approach and the choices be offered in a simple manner so that any
lay person can understand and act accordingly. The Commission also recommends
that government, in consultation with PFRDA, come up with different options for
investment mix and provide subscribers a range of options.
Contribution
Rates
10.3.18
In DCS, typically, the employees as well as the employers contribute towards a
pension fund. As discussed earlier, the quantum of pension payouts would also
depend upon the contribution rates. Higher the contribution rate, better would
be the pension payouts. The contribution rates for both the employees and the
employers vary across the globe. The Commission has received suggestions that
the government’s contribution should be enhanced from the present 10 percent in
aid of a higher payout under the NPS. Associations and individuals have made
presentations before the Commission highlighting that forecasts suggest that a
10 percent contribution from government will not be adequate to provide
reasonable post retirement financial security in all cases. The Commission,
therefore, recommends that this important aspect should be re-examined in
detail by an expert body for making course corrections if required.
Period
of Contribution
10.3.19
The Commission notes that time is of the essence in building up a reasonable
corpus and ensuring that effects of compounding are significant. It is
therefore essential that contributions by individuals and corresponding
contributions by government are made in time, and more importantly, are
deployed without any loss of time. Any delays in this respect, particularly in
the initial years can have a large impact on the eventual corpus.
2004-2011
Entrants
10.3.20
Government employees who have joined service between 2004 and 2011 have
suffered due to delay in finalizing the structure of the NPS and the issue of
detailed instructions.
Although
they have made regular contributions, in many cases, this money and/or
counterpart contributions were not deployed in the market. In the case of AIS
officers, some states are yet to release counterpart contributions or pay
interest on delayed contributions. This has led to a situation where the accumulated
corpus even after 11 years of service could be meagre. It is necessary that
this situation which arose during the transition from OPS to NPS be addressed.
The Commission therefore recommends that Central Governments and State
Governments should, in a time bound manner, ensure that all the due
contribution along with compounded interest, where contributions have been
delayed, be deposited in the accounts of the beneficiaries. Advisories should
be issued to the State Governments to deposit amounts, if not already done, in
respect of NPS beneficiaries belonging to All India Services.
10.3.21
Many Association have pointed out that unlike the facility under GPF, it is not
possible to make withdrawals under NPS, even to meet obligatory social
expenditure. This forces employees towards increased indebtedness as they have
to borrow from elsewhere.
10.3.22
The Commission notes that under the NPS Tier-I account, a subscriber is
permitted to make partial withdrawal of twenty five percent of the
contributions made to his/her individual pension account for certain specified
purposes. Such withdrawals are permitted a maximum of three times during the
entire tenure of subscription and a period of at least five years should have
elapsed between two such withdrawals.
10.3.23
The Commission further notes that there exists a voluntary Tier-II account.
Under this account, a subscriber can, at any time, withdraw the accumulated
wealth either in full or part and there is no limit on such withdrawals
provided the account has sufficient balance of accumulated pension wealth to
cover the amount being withdrawn. However, the Tier-II account is yet to be
made operational. The Commission therefore recommends that PFRDA should take
steps to make the Tier-II accounts operational as early as possible to enable
the NPS subscribers the facility of withdrawals from their accounts in case of
requirement.
Transparency
under NPS
10.3.24
Many associations and individuals have complained that the information relating
to the NPS is inadequate, resulting in high degree of uncertainty in the minds
of contributors about post-retirement benefits. The Commission noted that PFRDA
sends a communication to every participant each month with the current pension
wealth and the latest contribution that has been credited. The Commission
recommends that focused efforts be made to capture email addresses and mobile
numbers of subscribers so that seamless communication is ensured for all
subscribers. The Commission recommends that consultation with stakeholders
should also be held periodically in different parts of the country.
10.3.25
The Commission notes that no department of Government of India is taking
ownership of the NPS. The Commission recommends that a Committee consisting of
Secretary, Department of Financial Services, Secretary, Department of Pensions
and Pensioners Welfare and Secretary, Department of Administrative Reforms and
Public Grievances may be constituted to review the progress of implementation
of NPS. The Commission also recommends that steps should be taken for
establishment of an Ombudsman for redressing individual grievances relating to
NPS.
Tax
Treatment under the NPS
10.3.26
NPS is under the Exempt–Exempt – Tax (EET) regime while the General Provident
Fund under the OPS is under Exempt–Exempt–Exempt (EEE) dispensation. Under the
NPS, while the contributions and the accumulations are tax-exempt, withdrawals
are taxable. As such, this is an inferior tax treatment when compared to other
pension programmes such as General Provident Fund, Contributory Provident Fund,
Employees Provident Fund and Public Provident Fund wherein contributions,
accumulations and withdrawals are tax-exempt. The Commission feels that tax
neutrality should be ensured across various avenues for long term savings for
post retirement incomes so that the employees covered by NPS are not at a
disadvantage. The Commission therefore recommends that withdrawals under the
NPS should be tax-exempt to place NPS at par with other pension schemes. The
Commission also recommends that the service tax levied at the time of annuity
purchase by NPS subscribers should be exempted.
Issue
of Family Pension In Case Of Death of the Subscriber
10.3.27
Another complaint received by the Commission from staff associations and
individuals is that Family Pension after the death of the employee is not
ensured in the NPS. The Commission notes that the government had provisionally
extended benefits under the Central Civil Service (Extraordinary Pension)
Rules, Family Pension/Extraordinary Family Pension/Liberalised Pensionary Award
to government servants appointed on or after 01.01.2004.
10.3.28
Rules regulating these benefits have now been notified by the PFRDA. PFRDA
regulations provide for an exit option from NPS in case of premature death of
the subscriber by availing of additional relief from government, in which case
the entire accumulated pension wealth inclusive of subscriber’s contribution
would be transferred to government. The Commission recommends notification of a
scheme by government for provision of additional relief in such cases
consequent to exit from NPS.
Framing
of Rules and Regulations
10.3.29
The Commission notes that rules and regulating relating to NPS are being framed
and notified by PFRDA from time to time. Associations and individual officers
have raised the issue of the need for greater involvement of stakeholders in
finalizing these regulations The Commission recommends that government
encourage the PFRDA to set up a strong consultative mechanism involving the
DPPW, DoPT, DFS and some associations of employees for a review of regulations
and for finalizing future regulations to bring clarity and remove uncertainty
relating to NPS. The Commission also recommends that draft regulations should
be widely publicized to enable subscribers to respond to any proposed changes,
as normally done by other regulatory authorities.
FNPO TAMILNADU
FNPO TAMILNADU
LUNCH HOUR DEMONSTRATION
As per the National JCM's direction, and behalf
of FNPO Tamil Nadu co-ordinating committee decide to hold the lunch hour
demonstration in front of Circle Office
on 27/11/2015, from 13.00 hrs to 14.00 hrs.
All members are requested to attend demonstration.
Seventh Pay Commission Recommendations Holiday and Leave
9.2.1 Presently Central Government offices observe a five-day
week which results in 104 holidays every year on account of weekends. In
addition, there are three National Holidays, fourteen Gazetted Holidays and two
Restricted Holidays. Further, civilian government employees are entitled to 8
days’ Casual Leave, 20 days’ Half Pay Leave (commutable to Medical Leave) and
30 days’ Earned Leave. Besides the above, quite a few other types of leave are
admissible.
9.2.2 The following paragraphs bring out, in alphabetical order,
the different kinds of holidays and leave admissible, demands received (if any)
and views of the Commission on each one of them. Unless otherwise stated, the
existing terms and conditions regulating these holidays and leave shall remain
unchanged.
Casual Leave (CL)
9.2.3 Casual Leave is granted to enable a government servant to
attend to sudden/unforeseen needs/tasks. Presently 8 days CL is normally
granted to a Central Government employee per calendar year. The number goes up
to 10 days for Industrial Workers, 20 days for Defence Officers and 30 days for
Defence PBORs. Certain other categories of staff, particularly in the Railways,
are granted CL ranging from 11 to 13 days in a year. Demands have been made to
increase the number of CL to 15 days for Industrial Workers and 12 days for
other employees. CAPFs have also sought parity with defence forces in matters
of Casual Leave.
Analysis and Recommendations
9.2.4 Regarding the number of Casual Leave, the Commission is of
the view that the present system is working well and need not be altered. As
far as the case of CAPFs for parity with defence forces is concerned, the
Commission notes that CAPFs are essentially civilian forces and their service
conditions are different from defence forces. Hence parity in terms of number
of casual leave cannot be considered. To sum up, status quo is recommended.
Child Adoption Leave
9.2.5 This leave is granted to female employees, with fewer than
two surviving children on valid adoption of a child below the age of one year,
for a period of 135 days immediately after the date of valid adoption.
Analysis and Recommendations
9.2.6 No demands have been received regarding this leave.
Accordingly, status quo may be maintained.
Child Care Leave (CCL)
9.2.7 Child Care Leave (CCL) is granted to women employees for a
maximum period of two years (i.e., 730 days) during their entire service for
taking care of their minor children (up to eighteen years of age). There are
several demands relating to CCL which include converting the same into “family
care” leave, extending the facility to male parents and many representations
stressing that it should be extended at least to single male parents.
Suggestions have also been received that in cases where the child is
differently abled, the clause stipulating that the child should be minor,
should be done away with. Single mothers have highlighted their unique problems
and requested the Commission for liberalising the grant of CCL. Interestingly,
representations have also been made for discontinuance of the CCL, primarily on
the grounds that it disrupts office working and also because it promotes gender
discrimination.
Analysis and Recommendations
9.2.8 When CCL was first introduced by the VI CPC it generated
considerable interest as it represented a positive measure benefiting women
employees. It also took a while to stabilise and it is seen that as many as
five amendments/clarifications were issued within a short period of time. As it
stands, it is meant for women employees “for taking care of up to two children
whether for rearing the children or looking after their needs like examination,
sickness etc.” It is treated akin to Earned Leave and is sanctioned as such. It
may not, however, be granted in more than three spells in a calendar year.
9.2.9 In the first two years of its implementation the
experience was that women employees tended to treat this as Casual Leave or an
extension of the same, and the resultant frequent absences caused disruptions
at work. To address this, in September 2010, a clarification was issued stipulating
that CCL may not be granted in more than three spells in a calendar year and
also that it may not be granted for less than 15 days at a time. However, the
latter stipulation was subsequently withdrawn and as per the latest
clarification issued on 5 June, 2014 the government has decided to remove the
requirement of minimum period of 15 days CCL. It has been brought to the notice
of the Commission that the capping of maximum three spells in a calendar year
has, to some extent, addressed the problems relating to disruption of work.
Notwithstanding that, in the course of discussions with various stakeholders,
the sense that has come across is that what was introduced as a welfare measure
to help employees in times of need, is seen as a benefit that has to be availed
simply because it exists. There is, therefore, a palpable need to bring in some
inhibiting feature so as to ensure that only genuinely affected employees avail
of this scheme. Towards
this end the Commission recommends that CCL should be granted at 100 percent of
the salary for the first 365 days, but at 80 percent of the salary for the next
365 days. In making this recommendation the Commission has also kept in mind
the fact the concept of a paid (whether 100% or 80%) leave solely for child
care for a period of two years, is a liberal measure unmatched anywhere else.
9.2.10 The Commission notes that in the event a male employee is
single, the onus of rearing and nurturing the children falls squarely on his
shoulders. Hence extension of CCL to single male parents is recommended.
Moreover, the Commission recognizes the additional responsibility on the
shoulders of employees who are single mothers. Accordingly, it is recommended
that for such employees, the conditionality of three spells in a calendar year
should be relaxed to six spells in a calendar year.
Commuted Leave
9.2.11 Presently, Commuted Leave not exceeding half the amount
of half-pay leave due can be taken on medical certificate. A demands have been
made to do away with the need for medical certificate.
Analysis and Recommendations
9.2.12 The Commission does not find merit in the demand. Status
Quo is recommended.
Earned Leave (EL) or Leave on Average Pay (LAP)
9.2.13 Presently 30 days EL per annum is granted to Civilian
employees and 60 days to Defence personnel. EL can be accumulated up to 300
days in addition to the number of days for which encashment has been allowed
along with LTC. Suggestions have been made to increase the accumulation to 450
days, allow encashment of 50 percent of the accumulated EL after 20 years of
service and delink encashment of leave from LTC. A novel concept of “gifting”
has been put forward, wherein employee should be allowed to ‘gift’ certain
number of days of leave to one’s spouse or one’s colleague. “Vacational” staff
like teachers, principals, etc. have demanded restoration of 10 days EL, which
was changed to 20 days Half Pay Leave by VI CPC.
Analysis and Recommendations
9.2.14 In many organizations, employees are encouraged to take
leave on the premise that it revitalizes them and is beneficial for the
organization in the long run. Such a system is not prevalent in the government
sector in India, but substituting leave with cash is also not desirable. Hence,
no change in encashment guidelines is recommended.
9.2.15 The Commission recognizes that Earned Leave is, as the
name suggests, earned by an employee through the services rendered. Hence, it
is personal to the employee and the concept of “gifting” cannot be considered.
9.2.16 The demand of “Vacational” staff can, however, be agreed
to. Hence, it is recommended that “Vacational” staff be granted 10 days EL in
place of 20 days Half Pay Leave. Other than this no other change is
recommended
.
Extra Ordinary Leave (EOL)
9.2.17 EOL is granted to a government servant when no other
leave is admissible or when other leave is admissible, but the government
servant applies in writing for extraordinary leave. This leave is neither
debited to leave account nor is any leave salary paid. No demands have been
received regarding this leave. Accordingly, status quo may be maintained
Furlough Leave
9.2.18 This leave is admissible only to defence officers for up
to 60 days. It can be availed at half pay, once in a cycle of three calendar
years. No demands have been received regarding this leave. However, the
Commission is of the view that Furlough Leave is a legacy of the pre-
Independence era. Since defence officers are already entitled to double the
Earned Leave and more than double the Casual Leave available to civilian
employees, there is no justification for continuation of Furlough Leave. Hence,
it is recommended that Furlough Leave be abolished.
Gazetted and Restricted Holidays
9.2.19 Besides the three National Holidays, employees are
presently entitled to 14 Gazetted and 2 Restricted holidays every year. Out of
the 14 Gazetted holidays, 11 are observed throughout India, while 3 are decided
locally. For Restricted holidays, a list is drawn up at the local level taking
local factors into consideration; employee is entitled to choose anytwoin a
year out of that list. There are demands to include May Day and 14th April as
compulsory holidays throughout India. Suggestions have also been received to
increase the number of locally decided Gazetted Holidays from 3 to 6.
Analysis and Recommendations
9.2.20 The Commission is of the view that the present system is
working well. Accordingly, status quo is recommended.
Half Pay Leave (HPL) or Leave on Half Average Pay (LHAP)
9.2.21 Presently, government employees are entitled to 20 days
of Half Pay Leave for each completed year of service, credited @10 days on the
1st of January and 1st of July every year. There are representations that
encashment of HPL should be allowed at the time of superannuation.
Analysis and Recommendations
9.2.22 The demands lack merit. Elsewhere in the report it has
been recommended that 20 days HPL granted to “Vacational” staff be converted
into 10 days EL. Hence, HPL will henceforth not be available to them. No change
other than this is recommended.
Hospital Leave
9.2.23 This leave is granted to Group `C’ Railway employees if
they are suffering from illness or injuries directly due to risks incurred in
the course of official duties, on production of medical certificate. Full pay
is admissible for first 120 days and half pay thereafter. The leave may be
combined with any other kind of leave due and admissible, provided total period
of leave does not exceed 28 months. Demands have been received to increase this
leave to an unlimited period of time as applicable to PBORs of defence forces.
Analysis and Recommendations
9.2.24 This has been discussed under Special Disability Leave.
Leave Not Due (LND)
9.2.25 LND is granted when the employee has no half-pay leave at
credit and he/she requests for the grant of Leave Not Due. It is granted only
on medical certification, if the leave sanctioning authority is satisfied that
there is a reasonable prospect of the employee returning to duty on its expiry.
LND during the entire service is limited to a maximum of 360 days and will be
debited against the half-pay leave that the employee may earn subsequently. No
demands have been received regarding this leave. Accordingly, status quo may be
maintained.
Maternity Leave
9.2.26 Maternity leave is granted to women government
employees–up to 180 days for pregnancy and 45 days in the entire service for
miscarriage/abortion. Maternity leave can be combined with any other leave upto
two years without medical certificate. The Commission has received
representations for enhancement of Maternity leave to 240 days with full pay
and further 120 days with half pay.
Analysis and Recommendations
9.2.27 It is noted that Maternity Leave was raised from 135 days
to 180 days and ‘period in continuation’ raised from 1 year to 2 years by the
VI CPC. No further increase is warranted. Status quo is recommended.
Paternity Leave
9.2.28 Presently, a male employee with less than two surviving
children may be granted Paternity Leave for a period of 15 days during the
confinement of his wife, up to 15 days before or six months from the date of
delivery of child. Paternity leave may also be granted to a government servant
with less than two surviving children on valid adoption of a child below the age
of one year, within a period of 6 months from the date of valid adoption. There
are demands to increase the period to 30 days.
Analysis and Recommendations
9.2.29 Present dispensation of 15 days is adequate. Status quo
may be maintained.
Sick Leave
9.2.30 This leave is admissible to defence personnel only on
account of sickness attributable/ aggravated due to service conditions. Full
pay is granted for the entire duration of hospitalization. Beyond that, defence
officers are allowed Sick Leave with full pay and allowances for first six
months and fully pay only for next 18-24 months, while there is no such limit
for PBORs. There are demands from CAPFs for complete parity with defence forces
in respect of provisions of Sick Leave.
Analysis and Recommendations
9.2.31 Discussed under Special Disability Leave.
Special Casual Leave (SCL)
9.2.32 SCL is granted to employees to cover their absence from
duty for various occasions like sports events, cultural activities,
participation in Republic Day Parade, voluntary blood donation, Trade Union
meetings, etc. Full pay is granted during SCL and it can be sanctioned with
retrospective effect also. There are demands to extend SCL to organ donors till
the time they are fit to resume duty.
Analysis and Recommendations
9.2.33 The Commission would like to express its concern at the
widespread use of SCL as a means of getting away from duty. However, because of
the extensive scope and case specific nature of this leave, no concrete
recommendations can be made. The government may, however, consider the
following suggestions:
Review the purposes for which SCL is presently granted.
Limit the number of purposes for which an employee can be granted SCL in a year.
Limit the number of purposes for which an employee can be granted SCL in a year.
Limit the total number of days that an employee can be granted
SCL in a year.
Special Disability Leave
9.2.34 It is admissible to civilian employees when disabled by
injury intentionally or accidentally inflicted or caused by or in consequence
of the due performance of official duties or in consequence of official
position held. Full pay is admissible for the first 120 days and half pay
thereafter. The leave may be combined with any other kind of leave due and
admissible, provided the total period of leave does not exceed 24 months.
9.2.35 There are demands to remove the ceiling limit of 24
months–the duration of leave may be left to the discretion of doctor and full
pay paid for the entire period.
Analysis and Recommendations
9.2.36 There are three different kinds of leave admissible to
civilian/defence employees which are granted for work related
illness/injuries–Hospital Leave, Special Disability Leave and Sick Leave. It is
an established worldwide practice that employees who suffer illness/injuries
that are attributable to/aggravated in the course of their duty need to be
adequately compensated. However, due to the inherent difference between the
nature of duties of civilians and uniformed forces, a distinction needs be made
in the level of compensation provided. Having said that, there is some
similarity in the risks faced by different uniformed forces, and consequently
parity amongst them may be considered as far as this leave is concerned
9.2.37 The following is, therefore, recommended:
Hospital Leave, Special Disability Leave and Sick Leave should
be subsumed in a new Leave named Work Related Illness and Injury Leave (WRIIL).
Full pay and allowances will be granted to all employees during
the entire period of hospitalization on account of WRIIL.
Beyond hospitalization, WRIIL will be governed as follows:
For Civilian employees, RPF employees and personnel of Police
Forces of Union Territories: Full pay and allowances for the 6 months
immediately following hospitalization and Half Pay only for 12 months beyond
that. The Half Pay period may be commuted to full pay with corresponding number
of days of Half Pay Leave debited from the employee’s leave account.
For Officers of Defence, CAPFs, Indian Coast Guard: Full pay and
allowances for the 6 months immediately following hospitalization, for the next
24 months, full pay only.
For PBORs of Defence, CAPFs, Indian Coast Guard: Full pay and
allowances, with no limit regarding period.
In the case of persons to whom the Workmen’s Compensation Act,
1923 applies, the amount of leave salary payable under WRIIL shall be reduced
by the amount of compensation payable under the Act.
No Earned Leave or Half Pay Leave will be credited during the period that employee is on WRIIL.
Study Leave
No Earned Leave or Half Pay Leave will be credited during the period that employee is on WRIIL.
Study Leave
9.2.38 Presently, Study Leave may be granted to all government
employees with not less than five years’ service for undergoing a special
course consisting of higher studies or specialized training in a professional
or technical subject having a direct and close connection with the sphere of his
duties as a civil servant. It is limited to 24 months, except for CHS officers
who are allowed 36 months.
9.2.39 No demands have been received regarding this leave.
Accordingly, status quo may be maintained.