Demands for an overhaul of the Employees Pension Scheme have resurfaced on the national stage as trade union representatives prepare for crucial strategy discussions. National office-bearers of the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh are scheduled to convene in Vadodara on November 27 and November 28. The upcoming convention will place pressing challenges facing gig workers alongside long-pending retirement security revisions, including substantial pension hikes, broader wage ceilings, and variable dearness allowance linkages.
The Core Charter of Demands for Pensioners and Wage Earners
The trade union body, affiliated with the RSS, has outlined an extensive policy agenda aimed at cushioning EPFO account holders from the rising cost of living. Occupying the very top of the agenda is the demand to raise the minimum monthly pension under the EPS-95 framework from Rs 1,000 to Rs 7,500. Alongside this financial enhancement, the union seeks to anchor pensions to a variable dearness allowance and integrate pensioners into the Ayushman Bharat Yojana medical protection umbrella.
The memorandum also targets the existing thresholds governing employee welfare schemes. It seeks a doubling of the Employees State Insurance coverage limit to Rs 42,000 from the prevailing benchmark of Rs 21,000. In addition, the organization is pressing to raise the statutory wage ceiling under the Employees Provident Fund scheme from Rs 15,000 to Rs 30,000 per month, expanding the umbrella of mandatory retirement savings across industrial and commercial sectors.
Revisions Sought in Bonus Rules, Gratuity Calculations, and Pay Formulas
The deliberations in Vadodara will address comprehensive statutory modifications regarding compensation packages. The union calls upon appropriate governments to announce bonuses calculated on full wages or salaries as envisioned under the new labor codes. Concurrently, the union wants the statutory calculation cap for bonus payouts, which currently rests at Rs 7,000, to be raised substantially.
Gratuity disbursement norms form another vital component of the union platform. The proposal seeks to double gratuity computations from 15 days of wages to 30 days of wages, coupled with the complete removal of any maximum ceiling limit. To safeguard baseline purchasing power, the union insists on adopting a formula-driven minimum wage mechanism that moves in step with the actual cost of living.
Contract Labor Rights, Honorarium Revisions, and Pension System Restorations
Extensive focus will be directed toward grassroots workers serving under diverse welfare umbrellas. The organization demands upward revisions in the monthly honorarium delivered to scheme personnel, covering Anganwadi helpers, ASHA workers, midday meal staff, and National Health Mission employees. Alongside this, the platform demands the enforcement of equal pay for equal work across all categories of contract labor, accompanied by stringent penal measures against contractors and manpower agencies engaged in wage theft.
Administrative vacancies throughout government services must be filled immediately, according to the charter, alongside the urgent convening of the Indian Labour Conference. Furthermore, the persistent demand for the complete restoration of the Old Pension Scheme continues to remain an integral part of the union agenda.
Need for a Dedicated National Policy for the Unorganized Workforce
Addressing the broader employment landscape in August 2026, Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh urged the central government to open structured dialogues with central trade unions regarding the future of scheme workers, who collectively number more than 10 million individuals, many of whom possess specialized skills. The leadership noted that rapid transformations across employment structures necessitate a dedicated policy response.
Union representatives emphasized that no other nation possesses such an immense concentration of workers within an informal employment framework. Consequently, the organization maintains that administrative authorities must formulate an exclusive policy framework specifically customized to Indian ground conditions.
Understanding the Structure and Beneficiary Growth of EPS-95
Calls to enhance pension benefits under EPS-95 have remained an enduring objective among retirees and employee associations. Established in 1995, the scheme functions on a defined contribution and defined benefit model. The corpus funding these payouts is supported by an employer contribution standing at 8.33 percent of wages, matched by budgetary allocations from the central government contributing 1.16 percent of wages capped at an income level of Rs 15,000 per month.
Official updates released on October 31, 2026, reiterate that the pension architecture delivers monthly retirement disbursements to qualifying members upon reaching superannuation, standard retirement, or encountering disability. In instances where an active member passes away, these provisions extend survivor protections to spouses, minor children, and nominated family dependents.
Administrative disclosures highlight that institutional support has broadened significantly as overall registrations have climbed. During the 2014-15 financial period, EPFO distributed pension benefits to 51.04 lakh individuals. By September 2026, the volume of active recipients reached roughly 82 lakh pensioners, reflecting an expansion of more than 31 lakh beneficiaries over that timeframe.
Context of the Recent Wage Ceiling Adjustment
The renewed union push follows an official update introduced in September 2026, when EPFO expanded the wage ceiling for mandatory participation in EPF accounts to Rs 25,000 from the long-standing mark of Rs 15,000. Prior to that revision, individuals entering an establishment with earnings exceeding Rs 15,000 per month fell outside automatic mandatory inclusion, subject to statutory criteria.
Union Minister of Labour and Employment and Youth Affairs and Sports Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya explained that bringing workers earning between Rs 15,000 and Rs 25,000 per month into mandatory coverage broadens the footprint of formal social security. Despite that official enhancement, worker unions continue to push for an even wider net reaching Rs 30,000, alongside a meaningful boost to the base pension floor.
