Likely Bank D.A. from August 2014

Update On 31.07.2014 : Click Here
Labour Bureau,Ministry of Labour and Employment,Govt.of India, has released All India Consumer Price Index Numbers for Industrial Workers ,Base 2001=100 for the month of May’14,today which stood at 244 points  with an increase of 2 points while compared to April figure.(  There was a decrease of 16 slabs during last quarter )

           Based on the confirmed  AICPIN for April and May and assuming that index number for June may continued on same level ,in tune with  present inflationary trend , the DA for  Bank Employees/Officers for Aug,Sept & Oct may likely to  show an increase of 29  slabs Or more as per details furnished here under:

                               Base Year 2001=100     1960=100

APRIL  (confirmed)           242                         5523.87

MAY( do)                         244                         5569.5o

JUNE (Expected)              244                         5569.52

Average index                                                 5554

Less merged index(9thBPS)                             2836

Slabs 2718/4                                                679

Increase (679-old 650)                               29  slabs

 @0.15%                                                101.85    %  (  from existing97.50% )

 If AICPIN increase with one or two points there may have further increase in DA for next quarter.This is only assumption.

Kindly note that actual increase/decrease in DA    can be arrived only on release of AICPIN for June in next month by Ministry.

 Submitted by Mohan.P            

Consumer Price Index Numbers for Industrial Workers - CPI(IW) for May 2014

Consumer Price Index Numbers for Industrial Workers - CPI(IW) for May 2014 has increased by two points and stood at 244

National JCM demanded hefty hike in pay for central employees

Memorandum submitted to seventh pay commission.
Salient features of Memorandum to VII_CPC submitted by the National JCM on common issues.
Pay Band & Grade Pay:

Staff side decided to demand reversal of the PB & GP System to distinct pay scale system.

Highest Salary
It is suggested that this ratio should be 1 : 8.

Proposed Pay Structure
See Below (at the end of this article)

Rate of Increment
Demanded the rate of annual increment at 5%.

National Mazdoor Conference demands 20% I.R. and 50% D.A. merger

Citing steep hike in prices of essential commodities, National Mazdoor Conference today demanded
 sanction of 20 per cent interim relief and merging of 50 percent DA in favour of employees and pensioners in the upcoming Union budget.
“We demand early sanction of 20 per cent interim relief and merging of 50 per cent DA into their basic pay and pension to offset the economic hardships of salaried class in view of steep hike in the prices of all essential commodities”, NMC President Subash Shastri said.

Bank Bipartite : Unions met F.M., got assurance of expedite revision

Representatives of United Forum of Bank Unions, comprising mainly of PSU bank employees, today met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and sought his intervention for early settlement of wage revision negotiations.
"We submitted our representation to the Finance Minister and apprised him of developments with regard to wage negotiations with Indian Banks' Association (IBA)," UFBU Convener M V Murali said after meeting here.
He said the Finance Minister assured the delegation that the settlement process would be expedited.

FM to meet bank employees representatives for wage revision issue

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will tomorrow meet representatives of public sector bank employee unions seeking his intervention for early settlement wage revision.

"We are meeting the Finance Minister (Arun Jaitley) tomorrow and would seek his intervention for early wage settlement," United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) Convener M V Murali told PTI.

General Secretaries of nine employee unions under the umbrella of UFBU would present the case for as much as 25 per cent hike in pay slip component.

Bank Bipartite : Meeting with F.M. ?

It is reported from sources that UFBU leaders are going to meet the Finance Minister on Friday (27/06/2014) with a request to expedite the bipartite agreement with a favourable positive outlook regarding quantum of wage hike. Till now no official release from any of the bank unions is available.

Maharashtra electricity board staff to get 25% pay hike

Mumbai, Jun 24 (PTI) Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar today announced a 25 per cent hike in salary of state electricity board employees.
"The raise, which is applicable to staff in power generation, transmission and distribution companies, will be with effect from April 1, 2013," Pawar, who also holds Energy portfolio, said after a meeting of electricity employees unions in south Mumbai.
Over 85,000 employees will benefit from the hike, he said.

Andhra Pradesh Raises Retirement Age of Government Employees to 60

The Andhra Pradesh Assembly on Monday passed a Bill raising the retirement age of government employees from 58 to 60 years.

Chief Minister, N. Chandrababu Naidu, who moved the Andhra Pradesh Public Employment (Regulation of age of superannuation) Amendment Bill, said the government had taken into account various factors, including the increased life expectancy, for raising the retirement age.

There was a significant improvement in the average life expectancy as compared to 1984. As per the World Health Organisation, the global average life expectancy in the year 2009 was 68 while it was 65 years in India.

The Central government raised the retirement age of its employees from 58 to 60 years in 1998, Mr. Naidu said.

LTC by air extended for 2 more years

It is known from sources that The Union Ministry for Tourism extended by another two years a proposal to grant Leave Travel Concession (LTC) to Jammu and Kashmir and North East by air.
The package was due to expire on 17.06.2014.
The extension in package by another two years will allow all categories of Central Government employees to travel to Jammu and Kashmir by air, using either Air India or private airlines by Economy class only, irrespective of their entitlement.
The proposal would not only provide the Central Government employees an additional facility as an incentive but also give boost to tourism in Jammu and Kashmir, official sources said.

The official order is still awaited.

Details of bipartite meeting on 13th June between IBA & UFBU

Detailed report on 10th Bipartite meeting held on 13th June 2014, at Mumbai by Bank Unions (UFBU) and Indian Bank's Association is reproduced here under for information:

"After the last round of negotiations held on 14-3-2014, another round of discussions took place with IBA on 13-6-2014 in Mumbai in the background of the new Government taking over at the Centre after the general elections.

Cabinet Secretary assures of continuing five days' week in central offices

Six Days Week : No such proposal is under consideration with the Government at present - Cabinet Secretary

Present whispering about reverting back to six days a week in place of the prevalent five days week working in the Administrative Office of the Central Government. 

In this connection, the issue was discussed by Shri Shiva Gopal Mishra, Secretary Staff Side, National Council(JCM) and General Secretary, All India Railwaymen’s Federation, with the Cabinet Secretary on 13th June, 2014, and it was brought to his notice that five days a week working was introduced, way back in the year 1985 after prolonged deliberations at the National Council(JCM) level. Various aspects, including energy saving in the form of electricity and also Statutory Provision regarding working hours were kept in view. 

 After discussion, Cabinet Secretary assured to Secretary Staff Side NC/JCM, Shri Shiva Gopal Mishra, that no such proposal is under consideration with the Government at present. 

View the Press Release of Secy,. (Staff Side), National J.C.M. 

(By Courtesy : AIRF Website) 

Another futile meeting between IBA & UFBU today

As scheduled the wage revision  talks under 10th Bi partite settlement, by United Forum of Bank Unions(UFBU), held with Indian Banks Association, to day (13th June 2014) at Mumbai.

"During today's negotiations, IBA improved their offer from earlier 10% to 11 % which BANK UNIONS ( U.F.B.U.) rejected.
On I.B.A.'s request to spell out the expectation, U.F.B.U. told 25 % on Pay Slip Components which I.B.A. said not possible to consider.
Further course of action will be decided by U.F.B.U. shortly."

News provided by Mr Mohan P.

As reported this meeting was just a symbolic meeting in which govt shown willingness towards salary revision of bank employees for which PM and FM both had given assurance during their  election campaign.

Details of meeting and future course of action, if any will be intimated as and when available.

New simplified form introduced for CGHS beneficiaries

'..In furtherance of the above objective, the Medical Reimbursement Claim Form has been reviewed and further simplified. Separate forms have been developed for serving beneficiaries and pensioner beneficiaries with requirement of minimum information required for processing of the claims. The CGHS beneficiaries are required to submit their medical reimbursement claims in the prescribed forms with requisite documentary evidences to their Department / office or CGHS, as the case may be for further processing and settlement as per approved CGHS rates and guidelines.

The following forms have been prescribed:

Form MRC(S) – For Serving CGHS beneficiaries,

Form MRC(P) – For Pensioner CGHS beneficiaries."

Click here for the O.M. and Forms

(Reproduced from gconnect.in

Trade Unions meet F.M., demand D.A. merger among other demands.

 The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley said that skill development would be given priority so that more and more trained workers join the Indian economy. He said that the Government will give due consideration to the Ten Point Joint Charter of Demands given by the Central Trade Unions while formulating the budgetary proposals. The Finance Minister was speaking here today while interacting with the representatives of the Central Trade Unions as part of his Pre-Budget Consultation meetings.

Along with the Finance Minister, the meeting was attended by Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs, Shri Ratan P. Watal, Expenditure Secretary, Shri Rajiv Takru, Revenue Secretary, Smt. Gauri Kumar, Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment and senior officers of the Ministry of Finance among others.

The participating Central Trade Unions gave a joint memorandum to the Finance Minister for his consideration and positive response. Some of the specific proposals contained there in are given below:

Child Care Leave made more simple

At present CCL is allowed for a minimum period of fifteen days. References have been received from many quarters seeking a review of this stipulation. The matter has been considered and the stipulation of "minimum 15 days" have been done away with from immediate effect. All other conditions remained unchanged. 
Now Child Care Leave can be availed for any time, even less than 15 days at a time.
Click here for the O.M. dated 05.06.2014

Next Bank Bipartite meeting on 13th June'14

As per reports, negotiating unions meeting with  IBA, fixed on on 13th June 2014,at 12.noon for 10th BPS talks. Before that all Constituents of UFBU will meet on the same day  at 10 AM.

The last meeting of unions with IBA was held on 14th March'14.

Contributed by Mr Mohan P.

Five days' week likely to continue in central offices

 With Prime Minister Narendra Modi setting a hectic pace for his ministers, babudom is abuzz with talk of a possible review of working hours for central government offices as well.

Though department of personnel and training (DoPT) officials on Wednesday said no formal proposal for longer working hours or a return to six-day week had been moved, they felt that given that most ministers were keeping longer hours and also working on Saturdays, senior bureaucrats and other staff may be asked to put in longer hours to assist them.

A DoPT official said debate about the desirability of restructuring the working hours may start if the political leadership so desires.

Political sources, however, said no proposal to extend either working hours or switch to a six-day week has even been mooted so far. It was former PM Rajiv Gandhi who started the five-day week. However, bureaucrats have been making frantic calls to their contacts in DoPT to confirm if reports of a possible corporatization of government departments, complete with longer working hours, were indeed true.

Jammu and Kashmir hiked retirement age to employees

The Jammu & Kashmir government on Tuesday enhanced the retirement age of government employees from 58 to 60.

In a meeting presided over by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, the Cabinet also raised the minimum age for eligibility for entry into government service by three years to 40.

In another significant development, the Cabinet decided to absorb into regular government service all temporary casual labourers and need-based workers who had completed seven years of service. So far, however, bureaucratic tangle had led to delay in the regularisation of many such employees.

More than 60,000 employees will benefit from the decision.

Source : The Hindu

Taxpayers may expect some relief in budget

1. Exemption may be raised from current 2 Lakh rupees.
2. Deduction limit for insurance and pension schemes may be raised from current 1 Lakh rupees.

The finance ministry may raise the exemption floor for taxpayers from the current Rs 2 lakh in the Union budget. It also plans to make saving more attractive by raising deduction levels for investments in insurance and pension schemes.

Top officials said the government was likely to cherry-pick suggestions made earlier this year for the Direct Taxes Code (DTC) and include them in the budget. The Union budget is likely to be presented in the first week of July.

Likely PSU IDA (Including BSNL) from July 2014

BSNL Employees Industrial Dearness Allowance (IDA) Rates from July 2014 to be increased first time in 2014-2015
As per All India Consumer Price Index Numbers for Industrial Workers - CPI(IW) issued by Department of Labour Bureau, CPI has been increased to 239 for the month of March 2014 and also recorded an increase of 3 points in CPI Index for April 2014 and stood at 242, with a total increase of 4 points which is to be taken for July 2014(01-07-2014) Industrial Dearness Allowance (IDA) rates.
Based on this average of Consumer Price Index Numbers for Industrial Workers-CPI(IW), Industrial Dearness Allowance (IDA) rates of PSU Employees to be increased by 2.4% which raises to 90.8% from 1st July 2014 from existing PSU IDA rate.