New Delhi : The Union Labour Ministry has conceptualised a new ‘wage code’ to replace all central laws pertaining to wages and bonuses, and it is now working on how to apply it not only to the organised sector but also to the unorganised labour forces.
It will put into cold storage the government’s plan, unveiled last July, to set up the floor level of a national minimum wage by inviting comments on the draft Minimum Wages (Amendment) Bill of 2013.
“The wage code will set basic provisions related to the payment of wages, bonuses and any other benefits to employees. Once the code is in place, the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965, and the Equal Remuneration Act, 1976, will go,” a ministry official said, noting that the goal is to reduce the number of laws that an employer has to comply with.
The development has, however, sent a shock wave through the trade unions, as they point out that the government is going back on its assurance since 2012 to declare a statutory National Floor Level Minimum Wage (NFLMW) that is binding on all state governments to pay the minimum wages specified for different economic activities.
They point out that the UPA government had agreed to it in 2012 and that the NDA government had also proceeded with it by notifying the draft amendments.
The National Minimum Wages Act lays down minimum wages for 45 economic activities, but the state governments are allowed to fix the minimum wages for more than 1,600 activities. This has resulted in many state governments notifying minimum wages that are less than the specified national rates.
