No minimum wage revision in Punjab since 2012

The Punjab labour department has not revised the minimum wages since 2012 despite the fact that it has to be done once in five years as per the Payment of Wages Act, 1936.

Sans revision, the monthly minimum wages in the state, because of the mandatory variable dearness allowance (VDA) that is linked to the Consumer Price Index, went up only by ₹4,489 in 10 years. As of now, the minimum monthly wage amounts to ₹10,736 for an unskilled worker.

Hari Singh, member of the Central Trade Union, said, “Due to the delay in the revision of minimum wages, lakhs of workers, especially those working at brick kilns, have faced huge financial losses since 2012.”

Vijay Walia, a labour rights activist, said, “This is a criminal act committed by the successive governments in Punjab. Food inflation and house rent have already increased manifold since 2012.”

The minimum wages are revised on the recommendation of the minimum wages advisory board which held its last meeting in November 2023. As per the minutes of the meeting, which the HT has copy of, some of the board members recommended that monthly minimum wages should be revised to ₹26,000 while another board member recommended that the monthly minimum wages should be at par with that of the Delhi government.

Manvesh Singh, principal secretary, labour department, when asked the delay, said, “We are in the process of revising the minimum wages. The basic proposal is ready which will be finalised in the next meeting of the advisory board.”