Retrospective Bonus Act perfectly correct: Dattatreya

The government's decision to implement the Payment of Bonus (Amendment) Act, 2015, which doubled monthly bonus calculation ceiling to Rs 7,000 retrospectively, was "perfectly correct", said Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya.
The minister also promised that the government will come out with all clarifications in the high courts where the industry has challenged this decision and got a stay on this.
"They have liberty to go to courts. Whatever clarification has to be given, we will give. It is up to the court to decide. But this Act, which is amended, is perfectly correct," Dattatreya told reporters after a FICCI function here.

The government notified the Payment of Bonus (Amendment) Act, 2015, on January 1, 2016. The provisions of the new Bill came into force from April 1, 2014. It was passed in the winter session of Parliament last year.
It had been one of the demands made by unions during the country-wide strike in February 2013 and September 2015.
Elaborating, the minister said, "The Act was to be amended in earlier session (of Parliament). But because of elections, we were not able to pass it. Now, we thought that since we were unable to implement it (earlier), it is the only way to implement it with retrospective effect."

He further said, "It (bonus) is an incentive. If the worker gets incentive, then more production will come... It is in the interest of both the employee and the employer. Industry should welcome it."

The Act increases eligibility limit to Rs 21,000 from Rs 10,000 per month and the calculation ceiling from Rs 3,500 to Rs 7,000 or the minimum wage for the scheduled employment as fixed by the state concerned, whichever is higher.
As the last revision in these two ceilings were made in 2007 and was made effective April 1, 2006, it was decided by the government to make appropriate amendments to the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965, the government had explained earlier.

On the government's move to enhance minimum pay for contract workers to Rs 10,000 per month, he said, "Already, we have taken opinion of stakeholders. Whatever (is the) next course, we will tell you."
The government has planned amalgamation of 44 labour laws into four codes -- wage, industrial relations, social security and safety and working conditions.
The minister said consultations on the two codes -- wage and industrial relations -- are over and these have been sent to the Law Ministry for vetting.
He is hopeful of introducing the Child Labour Bill, the EPF Amendment Bill, the Small Factories Bill and the codes in the monsoon session of Parliament.

The minister is also confident that the NDA government will be able to create one crore jobs by next year.