Central government employees are keen to know the arrears they may get once the 8th Pay Commission (8th CPC) report is implemented. The implementation may take from some months to more than a year since the commission is holding meetings with various stakeholders. The arrears of central government employees will depend on the months of delay in report implementation and the fitment factor. A fitment factor in a pay commission is a multiplier of pay revision. A high or a low fitment factor can significantly impact the arrears of central government employees. In this write-up, through expert calculations, we will discuss estimated arrear amounts that Level 1-5 central government employees may get if the pay commission decides on a 2.0, 2.15, 2.28, 2.57 or 2.86 fitment factor. The real quantum of arrears will be known once the government notifies the 8th Pay Commission report. When can 8th Pay Commission report be implemented? Some experts advocate for as early implementation as March 2027, while others say it may be after May 2027. A section of expert believes that the 8th Pay Commission’s work is well on track, it may wind up work in March 2027 and employees may get increased payouts from April 2027. However, some feel that the pay commission will complete its 18-month of tenure to prepare its report and a possible implementation date can be after May 2027. When the government notified the 8th Pay Commission in November 2025, it gave the commission 18 months of timeframe to complete its report. If it doesn’t finish its report by then, the 8th Pay Commission can ask for an extension of the deadline. What can be the fitment factor for the 8th Pay Commission? National Council – Joint Consultative Machinery (staff side) in the memorandum submitted to the 8th Pay Commission has recommended a 3.83 fitment factor. However, experts say that it is too much and under the given circumstances, it can not be more than 2.57. Manjeet Singh Patel, National President of the All India NPS Employees Federation told ET Wealth Online that a feasible limit of fitment factor is 2.1. It means an entry-level employee who is earning a basic pay of Rs 18,000, will see it pay rise to Rs 37,800 if the fitment factor is 2.1. Who are Level 1-5 central government employees? As per 7th Pay Commission pay matrix, Level 1-5 employees are the foot soldiers of the central government workforce who look after the basic level but important work in offices. They hold posts such as multi-tasking staff, lower division clerks, upper division clerks, senior technicians, stenographers Grade C, etc.List of Level 1-5 central government employees (As per 7th Pay Commission pay matrix) Pay Level Current Basic Pay (Starting) Typical Posts Level 1 ₹ 18,000 Multi-Tasking Staff (MTS), Peon, Office Attendant, Safai Karamchari, Field Attendant, Khalasi, Helper Level 2 ₹ 19,900 Lower Division Clerk (LDC) in some departments, Postal Assistant (entry level in certain cases), Store Keeper Grade-III, Constable (varies by department) Level 3 ₹ 21,700 Lower Division Clerk (many departments), Tax Assistant (entry level), Technician Grade III, Driver Grade-II, Constable (higher pay departments) Level 4 ₹ 25,500 Upper Division Clerk (UDC), Senior Clerk, Stenographer Grade-D, Head Constable, Junior Assistant Level 5 ₹ 29,200 Senior Technician, Senior Assistant, Stenographer Grade-C (some departments), Assistant Store Keeper, Staff Nurse (entry level in many Central government organisations) 8th Pay Commission arrear calculations for Level 1-5 employees Ramachandran Krishnamoorthy, associate partner, managed services, BDO India, says that since the arrear will depend on the fitment factor and the delay in the implementation of the 8th Pay Commission, employees can get substantial amounts in arrears. In his calculations, he shows how much estimated arrears can Level 1-5 employees get under 2.0, 2.15, 2.28. 2.57 and 2.86 in the 8th Pay Commission. For arrear calculations, Krishnamoorthy takes 20 months of period assuming that central government employees may start getting revised payouts from September 2027. He multiplies the estimated increased payout by 20 to calculate arrear amounts. 20-month arrear estimates for Level 1-5 central government employees (At 2.0 fitment factor) Level Current Basic (₹) Revised Basic (₹) Increase in Basic (₹) Arrears for 20 Months (₹) 1 18,000 36,000 18,000 3,60,000 2 19,900 39,800 19,900 3,98,000 3 21,700 43,400 21,700 4,34,000 4 25,500 51,000 25,500 5,10,000 5 29,100 58,200 29,100 5,82,000 20-month arrear estimates for Level 1-5 central government employees (At 2.15 fitment factor) Level Current Basic (₹) Revised Basic (₹) Increase in Basic (₹) Arrears for 20 Months (₹) 1 18,000 38,700 20,700 4,14,000 2 19,900 42,785 22,885 4,57,700 3 21,700 46,655 24,955 4,99,100 4 25,500 54,825 29,325 5,86,500 5 29,100 62,565 33,465 6,69,300 20-month arrear estimates for Level 1-5 central government employees (At 2.28 fitment factor) Level Current Basic (₹) Revised Basic (₹) Increase in Basic (₹) Arrears for 20 Months (₹) 1 18,000 41,040 23,040 4,60,800 2 19,900 45,372 25,472 5,09,440 3 21,700 49,476 27,776 5,55,520 4 25,500 58,140 32,640 6,52,800 5 29,100 66,348 37,248 7,44,960 20-month arrear estimates for Level 1-5 central government employees (At 2.57 fitment factor) Level Current Basic (₹) Revised Basic (₹) Increase in Basic (₹) Arrears for 20 Months (₹) 1 18,000 46,260 28,260 5,65,200 2 19,900 51,143 31,243 6,24,860 3 21,700 55,769 34,069 6,81,380 4 25,500 65,535 40,035 8,00,700 5 29,100 74,787 45,687 9,13,740 20-month arrear estimates for Level 1-5 central government employees (At 2.86 fitment factor) Level Current Basic (₹) Revised Basic (₹) Increase in Basic (₹) Arrears for 20 Months (₹) 1 18,000 51,480 33,480 6,69,600 2 19,900 56,914 37,014 7,40,280 3 21,700 62,062 40,362 8,07,240 4 25,500 72,930 47,430 9,48,600 5 29,100 83,226 54,126 10,82,520