It pays to be enterprising than be a bureaucrat who lives by the book, if the salary hike for government employees recommended by the Sixth Pay Commission is anything to go by.
The pay hike suggested by the official panel for secretaries and Cabinet secretary is not even peanuts compared to what a director in a mid-size private sector firm draws, much less bridge the wage gap between the two streams.
While the Cabinet Secretary, who can be equated to a CEO of a company, has been recommended a Rs 90,000 salary per month (over Rs 1 million or Rs 10 lakh per annum), all others, despite the hefty hikes recommended will still earn less than that amount a year.
Secretary-level officials have been recommended a fixed salary of Rs 80,000 per month and others still less, bringing out the sharp difference in the salaries compared to that of high-profile CEOs in the private sector.
Mukesh Ambani, who himself employs several ex-government officials in his Reliance Industries, earns around Rs 25 crore (Rs 250 million) a year, while media magnate Kalanidhi Maran of SunTV earns about Rs 23 crore (Rs 230 million).
Another big earner is SunTV's Joint Managing Director Kavery Kalanithi at around Rs 23 crore.
Sunil Mittal of Bharti Airtel earns around Rs 15 crore (Rs 150 million), while pharma major Dr Reddy's Labs Executive Chairman Anji Reddy earns a little over Rs 14 crore (Rs 140 million).
About 300 private sector executives earn more than Rs 1 crore (Rs 10 million) per annum and the number seems set to increase in the coming years.
The country's private sector is replete with a list of India Inc's bigwigs earning stupendous amounts (read in millions) but barring the cabinet secretary, those in the government sector cannot hope to cross even the Rs 1 million.
The pay panel headed by Justice B N Srikrishna has, however, recommended several welcome measures which should increase the weight of the government employee's wallet.
It has, for example, recommended almost doubling of existing rates of allowances, while increasing education allowance to Rs 1,000. The latter deserves highlighting since the existing reimbursement was a measly Rs 50.
The Commission has taken steps to encourage delivery of results and provided incentives to 'performing' government staff by recommending increment at the rate of 3.5 per cent against the normal 2.5 per cent.
While the emphasis on result-delivery is welcome, a 3.5 per cent increment is paltry as compared to the normal increments in the private sector which amount to around 15-20 per cent. Result-oriented employees in the private sector can expect even more.
Even the attempt to give market-driven pay to young scientists and those holding special skills, though a step in the right direction, may not be enough to retain talent.
An initiative such as ESOPs, often resorted to by new-age enterprises, to incentivise their employees is something beyond a government undertaking.
With IT, telecom, power, infrastructure, retail and oil and gas sectors, amongst others, on a sharp upward growth curve amidst a looming talent shortage, the possibility of government employees seeking greener pastures in the private sector still remains as high as it was.
The minimum entry-level pay recommended at Rs 6,660 too falls far short of that in the private sector.
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