The budget proposes the following regarding the salary increase for government employees:
‘The pension of retirees has already been increased by Rs. 3,000 immediately after we won the presidential election. Since all retirees who retired up to 2017.12.31 are on the same salary scale, we observe that revising the pensions of only government employees who retired between 2016 and 2020 will create a salary disparity.
Since it has been almost a decade since the last basic salary revision in the public service, it is time to assess all factors as a whole and revise the salary structure. It is necessary to provide a decent standard of living to public sector employees, and the government should be able to attract skilled and trained workers while avoiding placing an excessive burden on the budget.
Accordingly, we propose to increase the minimum monthly basic wage by Rs. 15,750 from Rs. 24,250 to Rs. 40,000. The existing temporary interim allowance and special allowance will be merged into the basic wage and a net increase of Rs. 8,250 will be made in relation to the basic minimum wage.
This is also applicable to the judicial services, public corporations, statutory boards, university staff and tri-service officers in parallel with the salary increase of public sector employees.
In addition to the minimum monthly basic wage increase of Rs. 15,750, it is proposed to increase the value of the annual salary increment by 80 percent. Accordingly, the minimum annual salary increment of Rs. 250 will increase to Rs. 450. It is also proposed to adjust the annual salary increment of all public sector employees by the same percentage.
The total estimated cost of this salary increase is expected to be Rs. 325 billion.
The upcoming January 2025 would see public worker compensation reach as high as 50% and as low as 24% along with performance-based pay increases.
The Sri Lankan government has approved substantial reforms for public services which will activate during January 2025. The government workforce pay scale reform includes salary increments between 24% and 50% adjusted based on worker qualifications and experience as well as education levels. Public employees at the lowest wage level will receive Rs. 30,000 in base salary which will yield an effective compensation of Rs. 55,000 after subtracting the cost of living allowance. The review of cost of living allowance payments and adjustments for past pay increases toward retired personnel who left before 2020 bring benefits to pensioners. The 2025 budget funds will establish the possible ways to execute these reforms.
The government plans to conduct a scientific research in 2025 that aims at service restructuring and accurate employee assessments based on real organizational needs. The organization will link all annual pay increases together with perks to Key Performance Indicators (KPI) by implementing a performance-based system. To provide excellent services to the public sector reforms incorporate hiring procedures which match with National Vocational Qualifications (NVQ) and Sri Lanka Quality Framework (SLQF). The public sector workforce reduction will lead the employee count to reach approximately one million personnel.
The Increment & Budget
Internal employee compensation levels determine how the pending salary increase will be distributed at ranges between Rs. 7,500 and Rs. 10,000 based on source information. The pay scale system will determine all new salary structures that take effect beginning April 2025. The President with his role as Head of State and Head of Ministry of Finance authority decides the extent of wage growth.
Deputy Minister of Vocational Education Nalin Hewage revealed the budget proposal submitted to Parliament during its meeting on February 17th as the initial step in implementing NPP government vision for national development.
The current budget period will introduce pay raises for employees working in the state sector according to the Minister.
The Deputy Minister announced that the budget plan will include provisions for farmers based on relief measures and various sorts of subsidies along with existing payments of Rs. 6,000 going to school students.
The budget plan provides significant funding to advance agricultural development and small manufacturing activities in the nation.
