Trade Unions demand hike in minimum EPFO pension to Rs 5000, constitution of 8th pay panel

The Budget for 2025-26 will be presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1.

Trade Unions on Monday pressed for increasing minimum EPFO pension 5 times to Rs 5,000 per month, immediate constitution of the 8th Pay Commission and higher taxes on super rich in the upcoming 2025-26 Budget.

In their customary pre-budget meeting with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, trade union leaders also demanded an increase in income tax exemption limit to Rs 10 lakh per annum, social security scheme for gig workers, and restoration of old pension scheme (OPS) for government employees. The Budget for 2025-26 will be presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1.

Talking to reporters after the meeting TUCC National General Secretary S P Tiwari said the government should stop all privatisation and corporatisation of PSUs and impose an additional 2 per cent tax on super rich to fund social security for informal workers. Tiwari also demanded that agriculture workers be extended social security and their minimum wages should also be fixed.

Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh Organising Secretary (Northern Zone) Pawan Kumar said that the minimum pension under EPS-95 should be increased from Rs 1,000 per month to Rs 5,000 monthly as a first step and subsequently linked to the VDA (Variable Dearness Allowance). He also suggested that the threshold for Income Tax exemption be raised to Rs 10 lakh. Also, income from pension should be exempted from tax.

Kumar also demanded that the 8th Pay Commission to revise salary structure of government employees be constituted immediately. CITU National Secretary Swadesh Dev Roye also demanded that the 8th Pay Commission should be constituted immediately as more than 10 years have elapsed since the setting up of the 7th Pay Commission in February 2014.

Dev Roye also expressed concern over the decline in the number of permanent employees in CPSEs from 21 lakh in the 1980s, to over 8 lakh in 2023-24. NFITU National President Deepak Jaiswal demanded a separate budget allocation for the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) and Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) to provide social security benefits to workers in the unorganised sector.