The Union Cabinet, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved the payment of a Productivity Linked Bonus (PLB) equal to 78 days of wages for railway employees. The bonus, worth Rs 1,865.68 crore in total, will benefit 10.91 lakh non-gazetted staff members across the Railways.
78 days’ wages for over 10 lakh railway staff
The PLB is given every year before Durga Puja and Dussehra as a reward for employees’ contribution to the Railways’ performance. This year too, around 10.91 lakh staff, including loco pilots, guards, station masters, track maintainers, technicians, supervisors, helpers, and other Group ‘C’ employees, will receive the payment. The maximum amount payable per employee is Rs 17,951.
Perfect timing in festive season
In 2024, nearly 11 lakh employees had received the bonus around the same time, boosting their morale and of course their festive spending. A similar payout this year is expected to have the same effect.
The timing is significant as businesses and retailers hope for s stronger demand this festive season, thanks to the new GST cuts.
With millions of railway employees across urban and semi-urban areas, the bonus could directly increase spending on items like electronics, clothing, and household goods. Reports suggest that such payouts have a multiplier effect, supporting consumption and sustaining economic momentum into the last quarter of the year.
Railway federations demand for bonus revision
Earlier this month, railway unions had called for a higher productivity-linked bonus ahead of Dusshera and pushed for the formation of the eighth pay commission.
The Indian Railways Employee Federation (IREF) highlighted that bonuses are currently calculated based on the minimum salary of Rs 7,000 under the sixth pay commission, even though the seventh pay commission raised the minimum salary to Rs 18,000 back in 2016, Sarvjeet Singh, National General Secretary, IREF, had told news agency PTI. IREF has called the continued use of the old base salary for bonus calculations “unfair”.
The All India Railwaymen’s Federation (AIRF) echoed the demand, saying the current monthly ceiling of Rs 7,000 for the bonus is unjustified and should be updated to match the current pay structure, a Business Today report said. Both federations are urging the government to adjust the bonus to reflect employees’ present wages.