THE TRIPARTITE COMMITTEE ON WAGES appointed in 1948 recommended a framework of three-layered wages — minimum wage at the bottom, living wages at the top and fair wages in between.
“Living wage” was defined as the highest wage level that enables workers to provide for themselves and their families, and include not only the basic essentials of food, clothing and shelter, but also frugal comforts such as children’s education, health protection and essential social requirements. It also included some kind of insurance against contingencies like old age. While determining the living wage, economic conditions in the country and the capacity of the concerned industry to pay were also considered.
In the case of fair wages, we should consider maintaining the same level of employment at that wage and if possible increasing employment. Then the wages should enable the industry to maintain production efficiency. The minimum wage must provide, not merely for the bare sustenance of life, but also for the preservation of the efficiency of the worker by providing for some measure of education, medical support and amenities.
Minimum wages (‘MW’) are usually fixed for occupations in an industry where workers are not protected by collective bargaining or statutory backing in wage fixation. The Minimum Wages Act (‘MWA’) was enacted in 1946 and came into force in 1948. As per the MWA, both Central and State Governments are appropriate Governments to fix, review and revise the MW of workers employed in the scheduled employments in their respective jurisdictions. Schedule-B of the Act concerns minimum wages in the agricultural establishments and Schedule A, the non-agricultural establishments. The appropriate governments could add non-agricultural scheduled employment from time to time.
