SRC Explains New Four-Year Salary Review Cycle for Public Officers.
The Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) has introduced new regulations that will govern how remuneration and benefits for State officers and other public officers will be determined, with future salary reviews to be based on economic performance, affordability, productivity, job evaluations and the cost of living.
The changes are contained in the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (Remuneration and Benefits of State and Other Public Officers) Regulations, 2026, which were published on Friday, July 3. The regulations establish the framework that the Commission will use when setting remuneration for State officers and advising the national and county governments on the remuneration and benefits of all other public officers.
Under the new regulations, the Salaries and Remuneration Commission will conduct comprehensive remuneration and benefits reviews after every four years.
The Commission stated that the review cycle is intended to align public sector salary reviews with the national budgeting and planning cycle. However, the regulations also empower the Commission to undertake special remuneration reviews whenever emerging circumstances require immediate intervention.
The regulations further require every public institution and public organisation to submit information relating to the salaries and benefits of their employees whenever a remuneration review is scheduled. The submitted information will form part of the Commission’s assessment during the review process.
According to the regulations, the Salaries and Remuneration Commission will consider several statutory factors before approving any adjustment to salaries and benefits for government employees. These factors include:
- The country’s economic performance.
- The affordability of the proposed remuneration adjustments.
- The financial capacity of a public institution or organisation to meet the cost of salary increases.
- Productivity levels.
- Institutional performance.
- Comprehensive job evaluation outcomes.
- Labour market trends.
- The sustainability of the public wage bill.
- The cost of living.
- Applicable government policies relating to remuneration and benefits.
The Commission stated that these considerations are intended to guide the determination of remuneration and benefits while ensuring that public sector compensation remains equitable, affordable and fiscally sustainable.
A key provision of the regulations is the formal adoption of comprehensive job evaluations as a mandatory component of remuneration reviews. According to the Commission, job evaluations will determine the relative value of positions across the public service to support the principle of equal pay for work of equal value and promote fairness, consistency and transparency in remuneration decisions.
The regulations provide that job evaluations shall be undertaken whenever:
- A new public institution is established.
- The mandate or functions of an existing institution are changed.
- New job positions are created.
- The duties and responsibilities attached to existing positions are substantially altered.
The Salaries and Remuneration Commission also formally incorporated productivity and institutional performance into future remuneration determinations. Under the regulations, salary reviews will take into account whether public institutions have achieved their performance targets, their financial capacity to support remuneration adjustments and the applicable government policy framework.
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The Salaries and Remuneration Commission (Remuneration and Benefits of State and Other Public Officers) Regulations, 2026 therefore establish a structured framework under which remuneration and benefits for State officers and other public officers will be reviewed every four years, while allowing the Commission to undertake special reviews where circumstances warrant such action.
SRC Explains New Four-Year Salary Review Cycle for Public Officers.
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