Industry lobby seeks clarity on draft rules under four new labour codes

New rules silent on treating benefits like medical allowance and rent free accommodation as part of wages

A business association has asked the government to explain rules being changed for wages, industrial relations, social security, safety and working conditions under four new labour codes.

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), in a meeting with labour minister Santosh Gangwar, wanted to know whether wages will include contractual bonus and productivity-linked bonus. In the draft rules, wages exclude bonus.

"Given that only bonus payable under law is excluded from the definition of wages, it is unclear how contractual bonus, performance linked bonus, joining bonus, employee referrals, non-commission- based incentives / rewards etc. would be treated and whether they will form a part of ‘wages’," CII asked in its submission.

The rules are also silent on treating benefits like medical allowance and rent free accommodation as part of wages. CII sought clarity on that too.

The rules on industrial relations talks of setting up worker skilling fund. CII suggested that instead retrenched workers should be issued skill vouchers by the employers. These can be encashed or redeemed by the workers at any government authorised technical training institute, it suggested. In this case, the employer can pay the government.

The rules on industrial relations also say that the government can review its order granting permission or rejecting permission for retrenchment etc. CII suggested that in case of deemed approval after a period of 60 days, there should not be any option for the government to review on its own accord and this should be explicitly mentioned in the rules.

Besides CII, there were representatives of trade unions as well in the meeting.