Good Newss for Government employees as Employees Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) has come up with a new proposal to hike monthly wage ceiling for reporting under its social security schemes.It is reportedly known that the increment will be Rs 25,000 per month from the existing Rs 15,000 on December 19 of this year.
The initiative has been taken by the EPFO to bring in 50 lakh more formal sector workers into the social security wing of the Employees Provident Fund Organization in addition to its existing subscriber base of around four crore organized sector workers.
The Central Board of Trustees (CBT) which is the top decision-making body of the EPFO is going conduct a meet on Monday, December 19.
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Closed sources of EPFO said, “The committee is likely to discuss and approve the proposal to increase the monthly wage ceiling to Rs 25000 from the existing Rs 15000 for coverage under social security schemes for providing PF, group insurance and pension in its trustees meet at Bengaluru on December 19, 2016.”
The closed sources also stated that the latest move might bring 50 lakh more formal sectors into the Employees Provident Fund Organization. The sources close to the organzation also mentioned that the wage ceiling hike is pending because Employees State Insurance Corp provides health insurance to formal workers has recently increased the monthly wage ceiling to Rs 21,000 from Rs 15,000 from October 1, 2016.
As we know, social security schemes run by EPFO and ESIC for formal sector workers are under administrative control of the Labour Ministry. The Ministry of Labour, Bandaru Dattatreya had already spoken about this initiative previously.
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The minister had told the Lok Sabha, “A move for increasing wage ceiling to Rs 25000 from Rs 15000 for coverage under the PEF and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 has been submitted by the EPFO. No decision in this regard has been taken.”
EPFO had already increased the Monthly wage ceiling to Rs 15000from Rs 6,500 on September 1, 2014, in view of price rise and pay revisions in the formal sector.
Apart from Wage Ceiling, the problems of excusing textile sector from meeting compulsory EPFO norms may also come for discussion. The Union Cabinet on December 7 had given its support to alterations to lift employment and exports in the made-ups sector.
Currently, employees are prerequisite to pay 12 percent of their basic wages towards social security schemes run by the EPFO.