The 11th Pay Revision Commission has recommended that the retirement age of State government employees be enhanced by one year to 57.
The commission has also proposed a five-day week for government offices, and the abrogation of the compassionate employment scheme by offering better financial benefits to the kin of employees who die in harness.
The report of the commission headed by former bureaucrat K. Mohandas, titled Administrative Efficiency, Social Accountability, People Friendliness, and Gender Sensitivity, has been handed over to the State government.
Given the stiff opposition to enhancing the retirement age, the commission looked at the pros and cons. It observed that 56 is too early an age for retirement considering the life expectancy levels in the State.
By increasing the retirement age, the government can enjoy continued access to the considerable experience gained by senior hands. It will also enable the government to put off bulk payment of terminal benefits such as gratuity, pension commutation, and leave surrender in the initial period, it noted.
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“The deferment of the disbursement of pensionary benefits amounting to around ₹4,000 crore in a year may help the government temporarily tide over its resource constraints due to the COVID-19 pandemic and also against the backdrop of the need for more social security interventions,” the report said.
Working hours
The commission has recommended a five-day week for government offices and re-alignment of the working hours from 9.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. “A five-day week promotes work/life balance by allowing employees to spend more time with their families and pursue their hobbies,” it noted.
Compassionate employment scheme
The commission noted that the compassionate employment scheme (CES) should be abrogated. The scheme should be modified considering the “denial of justice to large numbers of young job aspirants, the adverse effect on the efficiency of the civil service, and the impropriety in the inheritance of public employment,” it said. Looking at numbers, the commission noted that CES constituted over 5% in government departments.
Sports quota
Sportspersons in government service should be encouraged with lump sum cash awards rather than promotions for achievements in the sports field, the commission said. “Out-of-turn promotions could dampen the spirit of other officers in the department and are not desirable, unless the achievement is an extraordinary feat, like that of P.R. Sreejesh in the Tokyo Olympics,” it noted.
Leave and holidays
The number of days of casual leave should be reduced to 12 per year as in the Government of India service. Further, the practice of declaring local holidays for local festivals should be scrapped if the event does not affect life in the locality. “For example, Beemapally Uroos, Vettucaud Feast, and the ‘Arat’ of Sree Padmanabha Swamy, all in Thiruvananthapuram city, do not require the closure of all government offices in the city. These are only examples, and there are similar events in other places for which local holidays are now allowed. These must be reviewed,” it noted.
