Navigating State Compliance: How Do We Manage Shops & Establishment Act Requirements Across India?

Hi all, I am working in the service industry, and my company (a Ltd. company) has a presence across India. Out of a total workforce of 8k on-roll employees, around 75% are blue-collar, and the remaining 25% are white-collar. We operate under the provisions of the Shops and Establishment Act. However, my queries are as follows:

1. Our registered and head office is in Mumbai. Should offices located in other states follow the formats/registers (muster, wage, leave, etc.) as prescribed under their respective State's Shops and Establishment Act?

2. Which statutes' abstracts are required to be displayed mandatorily in each of our offices?

3. Our salary processing is centralized and online, with payslips/leave records also available online, and payments made through direct bank transfers. How can permission be obtained to maintain these records in soft form for different locations (or States)?

4. Can anyone provide me with a Statutory Compliance Kit/Guide containing details of the formats/registers that need to be maintained at each of our offices under the provisions of various applicable labor legislations?

Thank you.

Even though you are operating from Mumbai and have offices across India, under a few acts, you may have to maintain certain statutory registers based on the respective state.

Shops & Commercial Establishment Act Requirements

As per the Shops & Commercial Establishment Act (which requires separate registration in each state), since you mentioned that you are following online payments and all records are online, in some states you may need to obtain prior approval from the respective departmental personnel. You may also need to maintain various registers such as Muster Roll, Leave with Wages Register, extracts on the Equal Remuneration Act, Payment of Gratuity Act, etc.

Professional Tax Registration

You will also need to have Professional Tax (PT) registration specific to each location, and the corresponding amount must be remitted to the respective states for the employees. For instance, if there are 8 employees working in Karnataka, you will have to deduct the PT amount for those 8 individuals as per the Karnataka PT Act and remit it to the appropriate department.