Is it mandatory to provide the wage slip to workmen in local language? If so, please share the act/ rule for the same.

In all the social audits, we are asked to provide the wage slips in local language. Please help to know if it is compulsory by the government in any act or rule.
Thanks
Tarun Arora

Dear Tarun,
Wages Slip is a periodical document issued by the employer to the employee communicating his employment particulars and gross salary earned and net salary received pertaining to a particular month. The purpose of communication is to make the decoder understand the subject matter exactly as conveyed by the encoder only. If your employees can understand only their vernacular, it is always better to communicate to them in the local language. It is a matter of practicality whether it is mandatory or not. If you feel that your employer can not understand local language, let the wage slips be bilingual.

Dear Tarun,
In general we are to issue wages slips to the employees a day prior to the disbursement of wages to the employees under Minimum Wages Act, 1948/ CLRA Act, 1970 as per the applicability of Acts but the language is not specified under these Acts. When we display abstract of Act & Rules, we observe that there it is written that we are to display the abstract in English, Hindi & in a language understood by majority of the employees but in wages slip matter it is not specified so. Moreover, you can also ask the social Auditors that where it is written to issue wage slips in local language.
R N KHOLA

Hello Tarun
Wages Slip has to be issued in Form XI as required in THE MINIMUM WAGES (CENTRAL) RULES, 1950 or the respective State Rules as applicable. You need to convince the Social Auditors that the specified format is in English, as required by the "Law of the Land". But I would suggest that before taking reference of these rules, please ensure that other related clauses are being complied, like - slips are signed, issued atleast a day prior to the disbursement of wages, a signed copy is kept on record.
Regards
Jaspreet Singh Janeja