Understanding Penalties for Non-Compliance with the Wages Act: What Should I Expect?

Hi everyone, I'm new to this community, and please do help me with my query.

Penalty for Non-Compliance in the Wages Act

What is the penalty one is liable for under the Wages Act on non-compliance?

As I don't know for which act you are asking, I will consider the penalties for both acts.

Penalties Incurred Under the Minimum Wages Act

Payment Less Than the Applicable Wages: Imprisonment up to 6 months or Rs. 500, or both.

Contravention of the Act: Fine up to Rs. 500.

Penalties Incurred Under the Payment of Wages Act

Contravention of the Act, Non-production of Documents, and/or Obstruction to Perform Duty: Fine from Rs. 200 up to Rs. 300.

Continuous Offence: Imprisonment from one month to six months and fine from Rs. 500 to Rs. 3000.

Penalty for Non-Compliance with the Payment of Wages Act

Contravention of the Payment of Wages Act mainly pertains to deductions and failure to pay on time. The penalty would be Rs. 7500 per incident. Now, I am not sure whether the penalty is per worker or for all of them taken together.

Penalty for Non-Compliance in the Wages Act

The penalty is a minimum of Rs 1500/- and a maximum of Rs 7500/-, with imprisonment for a minimum of one month and a maximum of six months depending on the violation. Please read Section 20 of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

Regards

Any violations of the Payment of Wages Act, the penal clause depend upon the quantum of violations imposed by the Court of Law, where the case is filed by the enforcing authorities in the jurisdiction. If non-compliance with the POW Act is totally avoided, the penalty may be more, as specified by our esteemed member, Mr. Varghese. If there is partial compliance, then the quantum of penalty may be less, but this will come with a warning. Repetition of the same or any violations specified in the Act shall be dealt with seriously. Hence, it is our advice to comply with the applicable acts to avoid the penal clause as nowadays there are many infrastructures available on the computer. If the quantum of work is high, you can apply for exemption for maintenance of records similar to the other acts. When we were in service in the seventies and eighties, we were doing everything manually regardless of any strength, including payroll. But now, all the facilities and relaxations in the applicable laws are allowed.

Regards,
Adoni Suguresh
Sr. Executive (Pers, Admin & Ind. Rels) Retired
Labour Laws Consultant

Your query relates to a few very basic ingredients of Labour Laws. I think you should read at least the Bare Acts of the related subject to have an overall view of the matters you would have queries about. Queries on certain debatable issues, or those requiring detailed clarifications or to be disseminated with respect to judgments passed by various courts, are always welcome, through which we also keep learning and stay updated. During the last 2-3 days, your purpose would have been served had you spent a few hundred rupees on buying Bare Acts, which will always be handy. However, I don't want to disappoint you; your queries have already been answered by learned friends. For your ready reference, I attach some materials gathered from friends' sources. Hope you will do what is needed for further learning. All the best.

Regards

Need suggestions on why many Indian companies don't pay minimum wages as per the wages act to their employees, but they show increased salaries in their salary books to protect themselves during future inspections. Companies deceive innocent employees and prevent them from availing EPF benefits. How can we raise awareness among people and employees about this discrimination?

Welcome to the community! Regarding your query about penalties under the Wages Act, it’s essential to note that non-compliance can lead to hefty fines, recovery of unpaid wages, or even legal actions.

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