Fixation and Revision of Minimum Wages

Under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, both Central and State government have dominion over fixing the wages. The State governments fix their own scheduled employments and further release the rates of Minimum Wage along with the VDA (Variable Dearness Allowance). Wage boards are set up to review and fix minimum wages at specified intervals. The wage rates in scheduled employments differ across states, sectors, skills, regions and occupations owing to a lot of differentiating factors. Hence, there is no single uniform minimum wage rate across the country and the revision cycle differs for each state.

Scope and Applicability

Minimum Wages Act was enforced to ensure the employers did not exploit employees with insufficient wages. The Act is applicable on all establishments, factories, place of business and industry types. Unscheduled industries are generally excluded, though a state can add a minimum wage for an occupation or specify it for a sector during a revision cycle.

Consequences of Non-Compliance

Under-payment and non-payment of Minimum Wage is deemed as an offence under the Central Act. The penalty may range from upto 5 years imprisonment and a fine of Rs. 10000/- (under Section 22 of the Act).