8th Pay Commission and Bank Employees: Why It Does Not Set Bank Pay

Why the Pay Commission does not set bank pay

The Central Pay Commission recommends pay, allowances and pensions for the groups in its terms of reference: Central Government employees, All India Services, Defence Forces, Union Territory personnel, Indian Audit and Accounts Department staff, regulatory bodies (excluding the RBI), and some judicial staff. Banks are not named. The Commission is also asked to weigh pay in central public sector undertakings and the private sector. That is an input to its thinking, not a rule that gives those employees its pay scale.

The Central Government's own pay rules, the CCS (Revised Pay) Rules, 2016, apply to people appointed to civil services and posts whose pay is debitable to the Civil Estimates. Bank staff are not in that group. For public sector banks the IBA publishes the settlements that apply.

What a bipartite settlement is

A bipartite settlement is a wage agreement between two sides: the IBA, which represents the banks, and the unions, which represent workmen and officers. A matching joint note covers officers. The two sides negotiate pay scales, allowances and some service conditions, and sign. The terms are then adopted by the participating banks.

The 12th and the 13th

The 12th Bipartite Settlement is the one in force. It is reported to have been signed on 8 March 2024 by the IBA and the United Forum of Bank Unions, effective from 1 November 2022.

The 13th settlement is due from 1 November 2027. Unions have started preparing their charters of demands, but no wage terms have been agreed and no figure for it should be treated as news.

How DA works for bank staff

Bank DA is not the Central Government DA. It is revised every quarter under the settlement on a consumer price index and shows up as a rate on basic pay and certain other pay elements. The rate is published in IBA and union circulars, and your bank's circular is the one to rely on.

Central Government DA, by contrast, is revised twice a year, from 1 January and 1 July, and follows Cabinet decisions. The two do not move together, so a Central DA announcement tells you nothing about bank DA. See the DA rate history for the Central Government series only.

What to watch

• The IBA's bipartite settlement page for the settlement documents.
• The circulars of the bank unions, such as the AIBEA circular page, for charters and negotiation updates.
• Your own bank's HR circulars for DA and any allowance changes.

What this site does not do

This site does not compute an 8th Pay Commission salary for bank employees, because that pay does not come from the Commission. The calculators on the 8th Pay Commission hub are for Central Government pay. For bank perks, see perks for public sector bank employees.

Common mistakes

• Expecting a bank salary rise from a Pay Commission announcement.
• Using a Central Government DA rate for bank pay, or the other way round.
• Treating a figure in a union demand or an explainer, such as a percentage hike for the 13th settlement, as an agreed term.
• Confusing the IBA settlement with the pay structure of a particular bank, which can add its own rules.

Official sources

• Indian Banks' Association: bipartite settlements
• AIBEA circular on the 13th BPS charter, 29 June 2026
• 8th CPC Resolution, Gazette of India, 3 November 2025

FAQ

Government employee? Find your salary by pay level and see 8th Pay Commission scenarios.