Contractor Licensing and Record-Keeping: How Should We Handle Subcontractor Workers?

I need clarification on the following:

We have a case where there is a contractor who has 10 subcontractors working for him. He has a contract labor license (in Karnataka, where the site is located), and each of the subcontractors who have more than 19 workers also has contract labor licenses.

The Confusion Is:

1. Does the main contractor need a license for the total number of workers (including contract workers) or only for the number of workers directly employed by him?

2. Does his annual return need to include data on all workers (including contract workers) or only those working for him?

3. Does he have to maintain muster rolls/wage registers of all workers (including contract workers) or only those who work directly for him? The subcontractors maintain their own muster rolls.

4. Can the subcontractors avoid maintaining muster rolls and registers if the main contractor has the names of all workers listed in his muster roll?

5. Will the answers be different if the subcontractors did not obtain a license even when they have more than 20 workers?

Looking forward to feedback on this point.

Registration Certificate Under the Contract Labour Act

It is suggested that the main contractor can obtain a registration certificate under the Contract Labour Act. In the registration certificate, all the subcontractors' names will be addressed. In that case, he need not maintain a muster register or any other registers on behalf of subcontractors. However, on demand, he has to show the relevant documents of subcontractors.

Regards,
S. Rajasekaran
[Email Removed For Privacy Reasons]

Ok, but will he need to provide data for all the workers in the annual return or only the workers working directly in his payroll?

Responsibilities of the Primary Contractor

If you are the primary contractor, it is your responsibility to obtain a license under the contract act for all workers, including both primary and subcontractor employees.

The annual return needs to include data on all workers, including contract workers. The main contractor is also responsible in this regard.

In this case, you just need to maintain your employees' muster roll by your side, but it is also your responsibility to check the muster roll of subcontract employees.

I don't think so. It is the responsibility of the primary contractors because the vendor code is issued only for the primary contractor, not for the subcontractor.