The 8th Pay Commission may bring a smaller salary hike than expected. Government employees and pensioners are waiting for updates, but the fitment factor might stay around 1.92 only.
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8th Pay Commission Salary: The central government had announced the formation of the 8th Pay Commission in January 2024. Since then, lakhs of central government employees and pensioners have been waiting to see how much their salaries and pensions will increase. One of the biggest talking points right now is the fitment factor, which plays a big role in how the new basic pay is calculated. People are curious about what number will be used this time.
There’s already a lot of buzz going on about the expected salary changes, but things are still in early stages. Right now, the government is working on finalizing the Terms of Reference, or ToR, for the new Pay Commission.
Once that’s done, the chairman and other main members will be appointed. Recently, the Finance Ministry shared that they are hiring 40 people to work in the new Pay Commission. According to the circular, most of these posts will be filled through deputation from different government departments.
Fitment Factor in Focus
Employee organizations are pushing for a higher fitment factor. Some groups are even asking for 2.86 as the multiplier, which they say will lead to a good hike in both salary and pension. But experts and former government officials don’t think the government will agree to such a big number. According to Financial Express, Former Finance Secretary Subhash Garg has clearly said that a 2.86 fitment factor is not very likely. Many experts believe that the number might be closer to 1.92.
If the fitment factor ends up being 1.92, then the basic salary will rise accordingly. For example, if someone’s basic pay is calculated under this new factor, the minimum salary could go up to around ₹34,560. But experts also say that a lot of this increase is just to adjust for inflation. So, while the number may look big, the real benefit might not be as much as people are hoping for.
6th vs 7th Pay Commission
It’s also helpful to look at what happened earlier. In 2006, under the 6th Pay Commission, the fitment factor was 1.86, and the salary went up by about 54%. But when the 7th Pay Commission came in 2016, the fitment factor jumped to 2.57. Still, the actual hike in salary was only 14.2%. That’s because a big part of that number was used to adjust the dearness allowance, and not all of it went into real take-home pay.
What does the actual calculation of the fitment factor say?
At the time of the 7th Pay Commission:
2.25% was the current salary + 125% dearness allowance.
Only 0.32% was the increase in the actual salary.
That is, if the old salary is multiplied by 2.57, then only 14.2% of it was really “new money”. The rest was just in sync with inflation.
Government Yet to Act
Right now nearly 47 lakh government workers and around 65 lakh pensioners are waiting for the government to finish setting up the 8th Pay Commission. Everyone is hoping the Terms of Reference (ToR) will be ready soon and that the government will appoint the new members on time. This is important so the recommendations can be rolled out without delay.
The 8th Pay Commission is expected to begin from January 2026, as the 7th Pay Commission ends on December 31, 2025. Last time, when the 7th Commission was put into effect in 2016, it added a financial load of ₹1.02 lakh crore on the government.