Understanding Salary Register Issues in Labor Court Proceedings

Hello Seniors,

We are maintaining a Muster Roll and Salary Wages Register in our organization, but recently the labor court rejected both of them and imposed a penalty on our company because, according to them, we do not have any valid salary disbursement proof.

Now, kindly help me with this issue as I am not aware of any register other than the ones mentioned above.

Regards,
Ritika

Dear Ritika,

Your description is not clear. Has the Labour Court rejected the above-mentioned documents as inadmissible while deciding a dispute under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947? Or did any other Judicial Magistrate's Court do so in a case filed against you for non-maintenance of registers, etc., under any other establishment-oriented Act such as the Payment of Wages Act, 1936, or the Minimum Wages Act, 1948? Also, what is your establishment - a shop, a factory, a catering establishment, or any other type?

Let me guess...

You are paying salaries in cash. There are no signatures taken from employees when disbursing payments, and there is no certification or authentication by managers. But seriously, do you expect members to guess what you mean, what you are doing, or what exactly the judgment of the court was?

Dear Ritika,

Do you pay remuneration through bank or cash? If paid through bank, you have enough electronic proof to show. Otherwise, consult a lawyer for this query.

Dear Ritika,

Please specify clearly the nature of your company, whether it is a manufacturing unit with a Factory Licence, under the Shops and Establishment Act, or the matter related to contractual labor. You have not mentioned the number of employees. The Labor Department has specified some particular types of registers for different types of organizations.

So far, I understand that you have maintained the data as per your convenience, but the data is not in the format specified by the Labor Department.

The matter does not seem like a labor dispute in any court. In some cases, the Labor Department reserves the right that if any organization is not maintaining the data in the proper format as laid down by labor laws, the Labor Inspector can impose a penalty. However, that amount is nominal.

In your case, it seems that you are unable to justify the data produced by you during the inspection. If this is the case, please ask the Labor Inspector which documents are mandatory for you. You can purchase the Registers-Formats from Jaina Book Agency, Gupta Book Sellers (Being Authorized dealers to sell the Registers).

Maintain the data in the registers to avoid repetition of penalties. Moreover, it also seems that the authorized person in your company has not properly handled the situation.

As suggested by fellow members for deep clarification, you can seek help from any Labor Consultant/Lawyer.

Ritika,

It is difficult to answer your queries on the basis of assumption and presumption. Please furnish me with full details as mentioned by the Senior HR Personnel above. Be very specific in your queries and let us know the same so that I may guide you accordingly.

Regards,

Ritika Ji,

Please tell me which court rejected your salary records and on what basis, and in which proceeding the court rejected your records.

Regards,
Pardeep Sharma

Dear Ritika,

Is it Labour Court or Labour Department? The Labour Court does not do things as you have mentioned in your post. If the Labour Enforcement Officer has raised objections on the registers, they should be assisting you in preparing a new one that complies with legal requirements. Please clearly communicate your problem so that it can be addressed promptly.

Muster Rolls and salary/wages formats must be approved in accordance with your certified Standing Orders, which are mandatory. I recommend contacting a Labour Law Adviser for guidance.

Regards,
RDS Yadav
Labour Law Adviser
Director, Future Instt of Management and Technology

Dear Ritika,

You need to have a valid proof of payment, i.e., either you can have cash vouchers signed by the employee against his salary, or you can make NEFT into the employee's account and attach a copy of the NEFT receipt from the bank. However, in the second case, you need to mention the account number of the employee in the signature place for reference.

As you are aware, the issuance of a salary slip is compulsory. You can print two copies; one you can give to the employee, and in the other one, you can get a signature from them and keep it in your file.

We are maintaining a wages register with revenue stamps for employees who receive their salary in cash as well as those who receive it via cheque.

Thank you for the reply :)