The PSC wants the court to suspend the decision by the SRC pending determination of the petition.
The parliamentary agency accuses the SRC of intruding into its constitutional mandate to provide services to ensure efficient functioning of Parliament.
It also says the salaries agency aims to hurt the well-being of MPs and Parliament staff.
“The impugned decision unlawfully seeks to vary to their advantage and detriment, the remuneration and benefits payable to the state officers ... contrary to basic labour law,” the PSC says.
It adds that the salaries team has no mandate to revise or set the daily allowances payable to state officers in Parliament or the Judiciary.
“This mandate falls under the powers of the Parliamentary Service Commission and the Judicial Service Commission,” it claims.
The Parliamentary Service Commission says the SRC decision in the impugned Gazette Notice is unreasonable and ignored the law.
The PSC also claims that, by seeking to reduce MPs’ pay, the salaries agency has not taken into account the rising cost of living since the remuneration and benefits were set in 2013.
According to the PSC, the salaries team ignored the mandatory requirement of conducting a survey of the prevailing economic situation and comprehensive job evaluation at least one year before the pay review.
The PSC adds that the decision to reduce the mortgage fund for MPs from Sh40 million for the speaker and Sh35 million for MPs to Sh20 million is without proper basis and not preceded by a market survey to determine the prevailing market rates.
According to the PSC, the review was unfair and motivated by bad faith as it was undertaken when the persons interested in becoming MPs had undergone political party nominations and were in the middle of campaigns.