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7th Pay Commission Bonus Update: Great news has emerged for central government employees ahead of the upcoming Dussehra festival. Along with their salaries, central employees could see a massive hike—up to three times—in their bonus this year.

The National Council - Joint Consultative Machinery (NC-JCM), the body representing the employees, has written to the Cabinet Secretary demanding that a revised bonus of up to ₹21,000 be issued this Dussehra, instead of the current ₹7,000.

NC-JCM writes to Cabinet Secretary, raises demand

Shiv Gopal Mishra, Secretary of the NC-JCM, sent a written letter to the Cabinet Secretary on August 27, 2026. The letter notes that the Dussehra festival is approaching and the government will soon issue orders regarding Productivity Linked Bonus (PLB), regular bonuses, and ad-hoc bonuses.

In light of this, and following assurances given by official representatives during the 49th NC-JCM meeting, the council has demanded that the bonus ceiling limit for central government employees be immediately raised from ₹7,000 to ₹21,000.

Ministry of Labour and Employment notifies new limit.

In its letter, the NC-JCM cited a notification issued by the Ministry of Labour and Employment on August 25, 2026, which raised the eligibility limit for bonuses. According to notification S.O. 4711(E), issued under Section 26(1) of the Code on Wages, 2019, employees earning up to ₹21,000 per month are entitled to a bonus. This rule has been made applicable retrospectively from November 21, 2025.

Questions raised over the old ₹7,000 limit

Manjeet Singh Patel, National President of the All India NPS Employees Federation, stated that even after more than a decade, employees were being paid a non-productivity-linked bonus of only ₹6,908. Currently, the employees' bonus is determined based on the old private sector rate of ₹7,000.

Based on the average of the minimum daily wage rates (ranging from ₹783 to ₹1,035) set by the government in April 2026, employees should actually receive a bonus of up to ₹27,694.

What was decided in the meeting held on May 11, 2026?

According to the NC-JCM, the issue of raising the bonus ceiling was raised during the 49th meeting held on May 11, 2026, under the chairmanship of the Cabinet Secretary. At that time, the government stated that the matter of bonuses for central government employees would be considered once the ceiling limit under the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965 (now the Code on Wages, 2019) was revised.

Since the Ministry of Labour has now notified the new limit of ₹21,000, employee unions are fully optimistic that the government will give a major gift to employees by issuing a revised bonus order before the Dussehra festival.

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