The central government has announced the Productivity Linked Bonus (PLB), or an annual bonus, for non-gazetted Railway employees for the Financial Year 2025-26. The government said the bonus will be calculated at 78 days' basic wages.
The Railway Board, in a letter sent on Wednesday to general managers of all Indian Railwavs and production units, said that all eligible non-gazetted Railway employees (excluding all RPF/RPSF personnel) will get Rs 17,951 as the PLB for FY 25-26.
The Board also said that the disbursement of the bonus will be made in the same mode as the payment of salary, on a priority basis.
While bonus for Railway employees has been announced, it is yet to be announced for other central government employees.
But here, the key point is that all central government employees, including those from Railways, get the annual bonus on a bonus wage ceiling of Rs 7,000. While Railway employees get a Rs 17,591 bonus, other central government employees get just Rs 6,908. Why is there such a vast difference in the bonus amounts of Railways and other central government employees?
Why do Railway employees get a higher annual bonus compared to other central government employees?
The answer lies in the number of days the annual bonus is calculated for Railways and other central government employees.
While Railway employees get it for 78 days, other central government employees get it for just 30 days.
Annual bonus calculation for Railway employees
Payable bonus (PLB)= Wage ceiling x 78/30.4= Rs 7,000 x 30/30.4= Rs 17961.
However, this amount is more than the bonus announced for Railway employees. This is because Rs 17,961 is the maximum eligible amount. Railways also factors in the output-input ratio for the annual bonus calculation, where output is reckoned in terms of equated net tonne kilometres and input is reckoned as the non-gazetted staff strength (excluding RPF/RPSF).
Annual bonus calculation for other central government employees
Payable bonus (PLB)= Wage ceiling x 30/30.4= Rs 7,000 x 30/30.4= Rs 6,908.
Why is the annual bonus calculated at the Rs 7,000 wage ceiling?
The bonus wage ceiling is determined by the central government from time to time. The current ceiling of Rs 7,000 was set in the financial year 2014-15. Many central government employee bodies argue that the 12-year standard to calculate the annual bonus can’t be considered, as inflation has increased significantly since then.
IRTSA demands Rs 18,000 bonus wage ceiling
The Indian Railways Technical Supervisors’ Association (IRTSA) in September wrote to the Finance Ministry to increase the bonus wage ceiling from Rs 7,000 to Rs 18,000, which would increase the bonus amount to Rs 46,184.
In the letter, the IRTSA argued that the net tonne kms (in millions) for freight increased by 42.32% from 6,82,612 in 2014-15 to 9,71,460 in 2024-25.
It says that in the same period, the staff strength reduced by 7.32% from 1,326,000 to 1,299,000.
The letter pointed out that between 2014-15 and 2024-25, the output-input ratio in terms of net tonne kms (in millions) for freight and staff strength increased by 53.55%.
The IRTSA claims that if a proportionate increase was given in terms of net tonne kms (in millions) for freight, Rs 27,564 should have been the PLB amount for Railway employees.
NC-JCM (staff side) seeks Rs 21,000 as bonus wage ceiling
The National Council for Joint Consultative Machinery, in a letter to the Finance Ministry, had demanded the bonus wage ceiling to rise to Rs 21,000.
Its argument was that the minimum wage as per the central government is Rs 21,000. So, it should be calculated at least at the minimum wage ceiling.