Karnataka government staff body demands constitution of 7th Pay Commission

A joint action committee of various associations of government employees has petitioned the Basavaraj Bommai administration to appoint a retired High Court judge as the chairperson of the 7th Pay Commission.

The committee also demanded withdrawal of "anti-labour" measures proposed by the government.

According to P Guruswamy, president of Karnataka Government Secretariat Employees' Association, the 7th Pay Commission under a retired judge should be constituted at the earliest. "The Commission should not be headed by bureaucrats as they do not serve the interests of the employees," he said.

"The delay in constituting the 7th Pay Commission has affected the finances of the employees," the joint committee said.

Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai had, in March, announced that a commission would be set up to revise salaries of government employees. The proposed pay commission would cover the salary prospects of some six lakh employees.

Adopting the 7th Pay Commission recommendations is expected to increase the state government’s expenditure on salaries by Rs 15,654 crore in 2023-24.

The joint committee also demanded the release of dearness allowance of government employees withheld for the past 18 months due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The employees forum also came down heavily on administrative reforms that propose scrapping of some government posts. "Rather than filling the three lakh vacant posts, government employees are being burdened by imposing additional responsibilities on them," the forum said.