20. Claims.—
(1) The appropriate Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint
1
[any Commissioner for Workmen's Compensation or any officer of the Central Government exercising
functions as a Labour Commissioner for any region, or any officer of the State Government not below the
rank of Labour Commissioner or any] other officer with experience as a Judge of a Civil Court or as a
stipendiary Magistrate to be the Authority to hear and decide for any specified area all claims arising out
of payment of less than the minimum rates of wages 2[or in respect of the payment of remuneration for
days of rest or for work done on such days under clause
(b) or clause
(c) of sub-section
(1) of section 13
or of wages at the overtime rate under section 14,] to employees employed or paid in that area.
(2) 3[Where an employee has any claim of the nature referred to in sub-section
(1)], the employee
himself, or any legal practitioner or any official of a registered trade union authorised in writing to act on
his behalf, or any Inspector, or any person acting with the permission of the Authority appointed under
sub-section
(1), may apply to such Authority for a direction under sub-section
(3):
Provided that every such application shall be presented within six months from the date on which the
minimum wages 2[or other amount] became payable:
Provided further that any application may be admitted after the said period of six months when the
applicant satisfies the Authority that he had sufficient cause for not making the application within such
period.
4
[
(3) When any application under sub-section
(2) is entertained, the Authority shall hear the applicant
and the employer, or give them an opportunity of being heard, and after such further inquiry, if any, as it
may consider necessary, may, without prejudice to any other penalty to which the employer may be liable
under this Act, direct—
(i) in the case of a claim arising out of payment of less than the minimum rates of wages, the
payment to the employee of the amount by which the minimum wages payable to him exceed the
amount actually paid, together with the payment of such compensation as the Authority may think fit,
not exceeding ten times the amount of such excess;
(ii) in any other case, the payment of the amount due to the employee, together with the payment
of such compensation as the Authority may think fit, not exceeding ten rupees,
and the Authority may direct payment of such compensation in cases where the excess or the amount due
is paid by the employer to the employee before the disposal of the application.]
(4) If the Authority hearing any application under this section is satisfied that it was either malicious
or vexatious, it may direct that a penalty not exceeding fifty rupees be paid to the employer by the person
presenting the application.
(5) Any amount directed to be paid under this section may be recovered—
(a) if the Authority is a Magistrate, by the Authority as if it were a fine imposed by the Authority
as a Magistrate, or
(b) if the Authority is not a Magistrate, by any Magistrate to whom the Authority makes
application in this behalf, as if it were a fine imposed by such Magistrate.
(6) Every direction of the Authority under this section shall be final.
(7) Every Authority appointed under sub-section
(1) shall have all the powers of a Civil Court under
the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), for the purpose of taking evidence and of enforcing the
attendance of witnesses and compelling the production of documents, and every such Authority shall be
deemed to be a Civil Court for all the purposes of section 195 and Chapter XXXV of the Code of
Criminal Procedure, 1898 (5 of 1898).
1. Subs. by Act 30 of 1957, s. 12, for “any Commissioner for Workmen’s Compensation or”.
2. Ins. by s. 12, ibid.
3. Subs. by s. 12, ibid., for certain words.
4. Subs. by s. 12, ibid., for sub-section
(3) .
11
STATE AMENDMENTS
Kerala
Amendment of Section 20.—In section 20 of the Minimum wages Act, 1948 (Central Act 11 of
1948) (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act),—
(a) in sub-section
(1), for the words “or any officer of the State Government not below the rank of a
Labour Commissioner”, the words “or any officer of the State Government not below the rank of a
Deputy Labour Commissioner” shall be substituted;
(b) in sub-section
(4), for the words “fifty rupees”, the words “one hundred rupees” shall be
substituted;
(c) in sub-section
(5), for clause
(b), the following clause shall be substituted, namely:—
“
(b) if the Authority is not a Magistrate, by the Authority, as if it were arrears of revenue due on land, without
prejudice to any other mode of recovery.”.
[Vide Kerala Act 23 of 2017, sec. 2].
Karnataka
Amendment of section 20.—In section 20 of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 (Central Act XI of 1948),
(herein after referred to as the Principal Act,—
(i) in sub-section
(1), for the words “not below the rank of Labour Commissioner”, the words “not
below the rank of Assistant Labour Commissioner” shall be substituted.
(ii) in sub-section
(4), for the words “fifty rupees” the words “one thousand rupees” shall be
substituted.
[Vide Karnataka Act 40 of 2017, sec. 2].
Karnataka
In sub-section
(1) of section 20, for the words “stipendiary Magistrate” the words “Judicial
Magistrate” shall be substituted.
[Vide Karnataka Act 13 of 1965, s. 67 and Schedule]
Rajasthan
Amendment of sections 20, Central Act 11 of 1948.- In the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 (Central Act
11 of 1948), in its application to the State of Rajasthan, in section 20, in sub-section
(1), after the
expression "Labour Commissioner", the expression "or a Vikas Adhikari appointed under the
Rajasthan Panchayat Samitis And Zila Parishads Act, 1959 (Rajasthan Act 37 of 1959)" shall be inserted.
[Vide Rajasthan Act 11 of 1976, s. 3]
