The Centre is ready with a “formula” on minimum wages and the States would have to abide by that formula once it is implemented. The said formula would manifest itself in the new Minimum Wages Act that the Narendra Modi Government is soon coming out with, Union labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya on Tuesday said.
The Minister who was attending a Confederation of Indian Industries meeting here told journalists that though a minimum wage was to be fixed by a State Government the Centre would soon frame a National Minimum Wages Act “which will be statutory and every State has to implement that minimum wage.”
In that case the States would have to make their Acts in line with the Central law and any provision contradicting the new Act would become ultravires, experts said.
Speaking on the said “formula” the Minister said the Centre in a couple of months would come out with a rate stating the minimum wage at the national level and “all the State Governments have to implement it.” The Government had held talks with all the stake holders including the States, trade unions and others, said the Minister, adding the unions were asking for Rs15,000 as the minimum month’s wage.
Incidentally, the Centre was also planning to increase the wages the labourers should get in case of a lock-out. Currently the labourers get a 15-day wage in such case. When new legislations come they would get wages for 45 days.
Speaking on the issue, the Minister said there was a need to simplify the labour laws. “There are 44 labour laws. We want to go in for four major codes because the laws were made 50 years ago. And to tune with the today’s situation reforms are necessary for their simplification, rationalisation” which was why the Government was “planning to bring out four codes.”
Hence the four laws on Minimum Wages Act, the Payment of Wages Act 1936, Payment of Bonus Act 1965 and Equal Remuneration Act 1975 would be combined into a single labour Code3 on Wages he said. The new labour law would emphasis on wages, industrial relation, social security and working condition and safety he said.
On the industrial situation in West Bengal the Minister said unless the State changed its policies it would be difficult to bring industry here.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who was present during the meet, however, said negative publicity was the sole cause for the State’s poor performance in industrial development.
She insisted that the negative publicity in itself was the result of the poor financial status of her ruling Trinamool Congress.
“There is a negative publicity about the State despite its progress in all fronts,” said the Chief Minister, adding the said negative publicity could be result of the fact that her ruling Trinamool Congress was the “poorest of poor parties.”
Dismissing the oft-repeated complaints about low-availability of land in Bengal she said “there is no such problem. land is available with us in the land bank which is being used to provide for new cities and industrial parts,” she said, adding the companies like SAIl, DVC and NTPC were investing in the State.
There were lands at Rajarhat, Asansol, Durgapur from where investors were getting lands, she said giving her helpline number for contact if there was any problem in getting lands.