Wages Act To Be Amended

The government was considering amending the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, to improve compliance, labour minister Sahib Singh Verma told a meeting of the parliamentary consultative committee attached to the labour ministry here today.

Responding to suggestions made by the AIADMK leader V Malaisamy and others, Verma said the proposed amendments would aim at making penalties for non-compliance more deterrent. He said both the Centre and the states needed to do more to ensure the implementation of the Act.

Verma also told the members the labour ministry was considering bringing in umbrella legislation for workers in the unorganised sector.

It is studying the report of the second national commission on labour and will have detailed consultations on it with the members of the parliamentary consultative committee and various social groups.

 

The labour minister said special awareness generation campaigns would be launched in various parts of the country among workers and employers regarding the rights and obligations envisaged in the Act. He suggested sustained voluntary compliance of the Act would be rewarded.

Members suggested more occupations should be brought within the ambit of scheduled employments under the Act. The number of scheduled occupations at the central level is 45, whereas in the states it is 1232.

Members said most of the workers in the unorganised sector were not getting the stipulated minimum wages.

Three members of Parliament attended the meeting along with the labour ministry officials.