Central govt employees’ annual bonus: Can it be paid in first week of October? What experts say

The demand to release the Productivity-Linked Bonus (PLB) for Group B and C non-gazetted central government employees soon is gathering strength. The latest is a letter dated September 25, 2026, from the Joint Council of Postal Employees to the Secretary, Department of Posts, requesting the release of the bonus before Durga Puja on October 21, 2026.

The government releases the PLB, or the annual bonus, mostly before Dussehra every year, which will fall on October 20 this year. Not just that, many organisations, including the National Council for Joint Consultative Machinery, NC-JCM, want the government to calculate the PLB at a higher payment ceiling of Rs 21,000, instead of the current limit of Rs 7,000.

But when can the central government release the annual bonus for a large number of employees?


A prominent official from the All India Defence Employees’ Federation (AIDEF), on the condition of anonymity, told ET Wealth Online that it can be announced in the first week of October.

Avinash Rajput, secretary general, Bharat Pensioners’ Samaj (BPS), said that the present indications point to an early October 2026 disbursal of bonus. “It should be given most likely before Dussehra,” says Rajput.

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Manjeet Singh Patel, president, All India New Pension Scheme Employees’ Federation, didn’t give a specific date, but said that it is most likely to come before Dussehra.

How is annual bonus calculated, and why are employee bodies demanding an increase in payment ceiling from Rs 7,000

The central government, in its notification dated September 25, 2026, retained the wage ceiling for PLB calculation at Rs 7,000. But the NC-JCM wants it to be Rs 21,000.

In a letter dated August 27, 2026, Shiva Gopal Mishra, secretary, NC-JCM, wrote to the cabinet secretary that the minimum wage announced by the central government is Rs 21,000, so the bonus wage ceiling should not be less than Rs 21,000.

In their request for a PLB ceiling hike, NC-JCM and many other employee associations refer to a September 2024 notification from the Ministry of Labour, where it had declared minimum wages for unskilled, semi-skilled, skilled and highly skilled workers working in geographical areas A, B and C.

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In the notification, the minimum wages were Rs 783/day (Rs 20,358/month) for unskilled workers, Rs 868/day (Rs 22,568/month) for semi-skilled workers, Rs 954/day (Rs 24,804/month) for skilled workers and Rs1,035/day (Rs 26,910/ per month) for highly skilled workers.

Employee associations argue that when the central government is itself notifying the minimum wage of nearly Rs 21,000 for unskilled workers, the annual bonus should be calculated at least at that wage ceiling.

How is annual bonus calculated for central government employees?

The annual bonus is calculated at a wage of Rs 7,000, and 30.4 average days in a month are taken into account.

Payable bonus (PLB)= Rs 7,000/30.4X30= Rs 6,908

If PLB is given at a wage of Rs 21,000

Payable bonus (PLB)= Rs 21,000/30.4X30= Rs 20,724 (estimated)

The All India National Pension Scheme Employees’ Association says that a Rs 6,908 bonus in a year is a small amount for any level of employees, specially if they stay in a city, so it should be calculated at a higher ceiling.

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AIDEF holding protest against reduced average days for bonus calculation

The AIDEF is holding a protest on September 30 (Wednesday) against the central government’s decision to provide the annual bonus to employees of four ordnance factories, the Ordnance Clothing Factory (OCF), Shahjahanpur; the Ordnance Equipment Factory (OEF) Kanpur; the OCF Avadi; and the OEF Hazratpur at the wages of 18.56 days instead of 30 days.

The AIDEF is demanding that the employees be given the annual bonus for 30 days of wages, and it should be calculated at the Rs 21,000 wage ceiling and not Rs 7,000.