SRC Set to Scrap These Allowances for Civil Servants
The Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) is actively working to streamline public sector pay by identifying additional allowances for removal in its ongoing efforts. These additional allowances, constituting the third phase of allowance reviews, are expected to involve various employing institutions.
The SRC plans to collaborate closely with these institutions, providing guidance on the specific allowances that should be merged, renamed, restructured, abolished, or retained.
According to SRC Chairperson Lyn Mengich, this endeavor aims not only to achieve cost savings but also to address issues of pay harmonization, equity, and fairness. This engagement with employing institutions represents a significant step in the broader process of rationalizing allowances within the public service. This multi-year process initially began with the review of allowances for State officers.
The final phase of this process will focus on the progressive review of allowances and benefits outlined in Collective Bargaining Agreements, aligning them with the provisions of the public service framework. In a recent development, the SRC eliminated retreat and sitting allowances for internal committees and task forces within institutions. Simultaneously, the Commission standardized daily subsistence allowances (DSAs) for local travel, leaving DSAs for foreign travel unchanged.
This review seeks to address various factors contributing to the national wage bill, including disparities in rates, the proportion of basic pay, and payments for factors already covered by the basic salary. Additionally, the SRC aims to tackle the proliferation of allowances and the multitude of names used for these allowances.
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In the 2022/23 financial year, the SRC has already eliminated plenary sitting, ministerial, and taxable car allowances. This action has resulted in substantial annual savings, estimated at Sh1.7 billion for the first two allowances and Sh2.4 billion for the taxable car allowance.
The SRC defines allowances as periodic or one-off payments to public officers, supplementing their basic salary to address specific employee needs or circumstances.
With approximately 247 allowances constituting nearly half of the wage bill (48 percent), the SRC is targeting these allowances for reform. Notably, the top 20 allowances in the public service account for 95 percent of the total expenditure on allowances.
Among the most remunerative allowances are house, commuter/transport, hardship, police/prison, and leave allowances. Facilitative allowances, such as daily subsistence, mileage, and foreign service allowances, also play significant roles in the compensation structure.
Public service allowances have long presented challenges to the government’s efforts to streamline payments and control the rising wage bill.
SRC Set to Scrap These Allowances for Civil Servants
