Wages - Definition - Law Dictionary Home Dictionary Definition wages

Definition :

Wages, if the remuneration is to be paid daily or weekly, it can be called wages. But when it is monthly remuneration payable on the last day of the month or after that date, and when the remuneration considering the general standards of payments is fairly high, then it has to be understood as salary, K.V.V. Sharma (in re), (1952) 2 Mad LJ 917.

Includes any bonus or other additional remunera-tion etc., and any sum 'payable to such person by reason of the termination of his employment, A.R. Sarin v. B.C. Patil, AIR 1951 Bom 423.

Means remuneration payable to an employee under an award or settlement, Purshottam v. Potdar, AIR 1966 SC 856.

Means remuneration which an employer is liable to pay, if the term of the contract of employment are fulfilled. In other words, they are payments made by an employer for services rendered, G.M. Joshi v. First Civil Judge, AIR 1958 Bom 262.

Wages, ought to include gratuity as well, Tirjugi Sitaram v. Badlu Prasad Bheru Prasad, AIR 1962 MP 361.

The compensation agreed upon by a master to be paid to a servant, or any other person hired to do work or business for him.

An infant can recover wages up to 100l. in the country Court, by s. 77 of the (English) County Courts Act, 1934, as if he were of full age.

Wages of any 'servant, labourer, or workman' cannot be attached to satisfy judgments, (English) Wages Attachment Abolition Act, 1870 (33 & 34 Vict. c. 30).

Seamen have a lien on the ship for their wages; they may enforce their claim by an action in rem or in personam. Courts of Summary Jurisdiction are given jurisdiction to try cases where wages not exceeding 50l. are claimed by a seaman (Merchant Shipping Act, 1894, s. 164). See also title MASTER AND SERVANT; PREFERENTIAL PAYMENTS; TRUCK ACTS.

It includes any privilege or benefit which is capable of being estimated in money, other than a travelling allowance or the value of any travelling concession or a contribution paid by the employer of a workman towards any pension or provident fund or a sum paid to a workman to cover any special expenses entailed on him by the nature of his employment. [Workmen's Compensation Act, 1923 (8 of 1923), s. 2 (1) (m)]

Means all emoluments which are earned by an employee while on duty or on leave in accordance with the terms and conditions of his employments and which are paid or are payable to him in cash and includes dearness allowance but does not include any bonus, commission, house rent allow-ance, overtime wages and any other allowance. [Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972 (39 of 1972), s. 2 (s)]

The term 'wages' means all remuneration, Bala Subrahmanya Rajaram v. B.C. Patil, AIR 1958 SC 518: (1958) SCR 1504. [Payment of Wages Act, 1936, s. 2 (vi)]

Sir William Anson's definition of 'wager' as a promise to give money or money's worth upon the determination or ascertainment of an uncertain event accurately brings out the concept of wager declared void by s. 30 of the Contract Act. Gambling or wagering contracts were never declared to be illegal by courts in India as being contrary to public policy as offending the principles of ancient Hindu Law and it was not possible to give a novel content to that doctrine in respect of gambling and wagering, Gherulal Parakh v. Mahadeodas Maiya, AIR 1959 SC 781 (785): (1959) Supp 2 SCR 406.

It is plain that remuneration payable to an employee under an award or settlement amounts to wages within the meaning of this definition, Purshottam H. Judye v. V.B. Potdar, AIR 1966 SC 856 (858): (1966) 2 SCR 353.

S. 2(6) of the Payment of Wages Act defines 'wages' to include inter alia any remuneration to which the person employed is entitled in respect of any leave period. Some aid may be had from the definition of wages in the Payment of Wages Act, viz., wages include leave wages. Therefore, the word 'wages' in s. 31 of the Act will mean wages which are calculated under s. 27 of the Act, Mangalore Ganesh Beedi Works v. Union of India, AIR 1974 SC 1832: (1974) 4 SCC 43: (1974) 3 SCR 221. [Beedi and Cigar Workers (Conditions of Employment), Act, 1966, s. 31]

The expression 'wages' does not imply that the compensation is to be determined solely upon the basis of time spent in service; it may be determined by the work done; it could be estimated in either way. If conceptually salary and wages mean the same thing then salary could take form of payment by reference to the time factor or by the job done. In fact, in the case of salary the recompense could be determined wholly on the basis of time spent on service or wholly by the work done or party by the time spent in service and partly by the work

done. In other words, whatever be the basis on which such recompense is determined it would

all be salary, Gestetner Duplicators Pvt. Ltd. v. Commissioner of Income Tax, AIR 1979 SC 607: (1979) 2 SCC 354: (1979) 2 SCR 788.

The bonus in question did not fall under any category or class mentioned in the definition of 'wages' as contained in s. 2(22) of the Act. Bonus in the nature of ex gratia payment payable one month after end of the each quarter-Not includible in wages, Regional Director, Employees' State Insurance Corporation v. Bata Shoe Co. (P) Ltd., AIR 1986 SC 237: (1985) 4 SCC 460: (1985) Supp 3 SCR 639. [Employees State Insurance Act, 1948, s. 2(22)]

The attendance bonus payable to the employees is under the terms of the settlement which has become a part of the contract of employment. Hence the said bonus will fall within the first part of the definition of 'wages' under s. 2(22) of the Act, Wellman (India) Pvt. Ltd. v. E.S.I.C., (1994) 1 SCC 219: AIR 1994 SC 1037 (1041). [Employees State Insurance Act, (34 of 1948), s. 2(22)]

The term 'wages' includes the balance of wages or arrears thereof, Senior Regional Manager, F.C.I. v. Tulsi Das Bauri, AIR 1997 SC 2446 (2447): (1997) 5 SCC 51. [Contract Labour Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970, s. 21]

Includes production bonus, Handloom House Ernakulam v. Regional Director, ESI, AIR 1999 SC 1697 (1698): (1999) 4 SCC 7. [Employees State Insurance Act, 1948, s. 2(22)]

The word 'other' appearing at the commencement of the third part of the definition of wages under s. 2(22) indicates that it must be remuneration or additional remuneration other than the remunera-tion which is referred to in the earlier part of the definition viz., all remuneration paid or payable, in cash to an employee, if the terms of the contract of employment, express or implied, were fulfilled and incentive bonus in the present scheme is certainly additional remuneration. Under the third part of the definition of 'wages' it is actual factum of payment which counts because the word used is 'paid' as distinguished from 'paid' or payable. The moment one gets any additional remuneration other than the remuneration payable under the contract of employment and if this additional remuneration is paid at intervals not exceeding two months, it becomes 'wages' by virtue of the third part of the definition of 'wages', Modella Woollens Ltd. v. E.S.I. Corporation, 1994 Supp (3) SCC 580. [Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948, s. 2(22)