Karnataka government issues draft notification on minimum wages

The Karnataka government has issued a draft notification establishing minimum wages for various skilled and unskilled workers.

Karnataka government on Friday issued a draft notification relating to the minimum wages for skilled and unskilled workers in various categories.

The minimum daily wages for the unskilled workers will be ₹989 in zone-1, ₹899 in zone-2 and ₹817.35 in zone-3. (Amit Dave/Reuters)

According to the draft notification, those in sanitation work will be entitled to get a minimum of ₹989 per day and ₹21,251.30 per month.

Highly skilled electricians will be entitled for a daily wage of ₹1,316.36 per day and ₹34,225.42 per month. Skilled electricians will be entitled for a daily wage of ₹1,196.69 and ₹31,114.02 per month.

Semi-skilled electricians will get ₹1,087.90 per day and ₹28,285.47 per month, while unskilled electricians will get ₹989 a day and ₹25,714.07 per month.

The minimum daily wages for the unskilled workers will be ₹989 in zone-1, ₹899 in zone-2 and ₹817.35 in zone-3.

In other sectors, the minimum daily wage for highly skilled workers will range from ₹1,196.69 a day to ₹989 whereas the unskilled workers will be entitled for a daily wage ranging from ₹743 to ₹899.09 a day.

The All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) has welcomed the government's decision.

The government notification on separate wage rates were fixed or revised for 81 Scheduled Industries across the State of Karnataka under Section 5(1) (a) and 5(1) (b) of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948.

In 2022-23, notifications were issued revising the rates for a total of 34 Scheduled Industries related to various Scheduled Industries, in addition to the minimum wage prevailing during the said period, the notification said.

The said notifications were challenged by the AITUC Trade Union in a writ petition filed before a Karnataka High Court. The Court had quashed it and directed that the minimum wage be calculated and fresh notifications be issued following the guidelines given by the Supreme Court.

"In the wake of the differences in the wage rates of various scheduled industries based on sector and skill and with the good intention of ensuring an equal minimum wage for all categories of workers, a uniform notification has been issued instead of the practice of issuing separate notifications for each scheduled industry," the notification read.