Wages Structure in India under Minimum Wages Act, 1948 || Labour and Industrial Law || Story of Law
The phrase 'Minimum Wages' has not been defined in the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 because it would not be possible to lay down a uniform minimum wage, for all periods of time, for all places of different regions, or all types of industries and establishments.
Article 43 to the Constitution has been relied upon to uphold the reasonableness of the restrictions imposed by Minimum Wages Act, 1948 upon the fundamental rights of business guarantee by Article 19(1)(g).
Need based minimum wage :-
The concept an 'need based minimum wage' means nothing but fixing of wage should be based on the needs of workman. The following norms are accepted by Tripartite Committee of the Indian Labour Conference held at new Delhi in 1957;
- In calculation minimum wage, the standard of working class family should be taken to consist of three consumption units for one earner; the earning women, children and adolescents should be disregarded.
- Minimum food requirements should be calculated on the basis of net intake of 2,700 calories for an average Indian adult of moderate activity.
- clothing requirements should be estimated as person consumption of 18 yards per annum which would give for average worker's family, a total 72 yards.
- fuel, lighting and other 'miscellaneous' items of expenditure should constitute 20 per cent of total minimum wage.
- Children's education, medical requirement, minimum recreation including festivals/ceremonies and provision for old age, marriages etc should further constitute 25 per cent of the total minimum wage.