Settlements between employers and employees regarding wage arrears must be honored, and service weightage cannot be included in minimum wages pending a Supreme Court decision.

J U D G M E N T

Dated this the 16^th day of October, 2024 The petitioner is aggrieved by Ext.P12 order of the authority under the Minimum Wages Act and Ext.P13 Minimum Wages Notification. The petitioner is M/s.Foster Foods Private Limited, a private venture.

2. The 2^nd respondent-Assistant Labour Officer filed a claim before the Minimum Wages Authority alleging that the employees / workmen of the petitioner are not being paid minimum wages. The 2^nd respondent claimed the arrears of minimum wages at ₹1,75,341/-. After considering the objections of the employer, the Minimum Wages Authority passed Ext.P12 order directing the petitioner to pay arrears of minimum wages to employees for the period from October, 2016 to October, 2017. The minimum wage so ordered to be paid was ₹1,92,874/-.

3. The petitioner challenges Exts.P12 and P13 Notifications. Ext.P13 Minimum Wages Notification is challenged by the petitioner on the ground that this Court in the judgment in Kerala Non-banking Finance Companies Welfare Association v. State of Kerala and others [ 2019 (4) KLT 977 ] had held that the service weightage cannot be a component of minimum wages. The petitioner further argued that the category of Manager cannot be included in any Minimum Wages Notification because a Manager will not fall within the category of workmen or employee. However, minimum wages have been prescribed for the category of the Manager also, in Ext.P13 notification.

4. As regards Ext.P12 order, the petitioner urged that there was a Form-H settlement between the employer and employees and Ext.P10 settlement was signed on 21.11.2022. Ext.P10 settlement involved payment of arrears of wages also. As there is a final settlement between the employer and employees, the Minimum Wages Authority could not have ordered to pay amounts over and above the settlement amount as per Ext.P10.

5. The further argument of the petitioner is that though the petitioner had submitted a detailed argument note, the arguments were not met by the Minimum Wages Authority. The petitioner further urged that to establish that the petitioner had paid the minimum wages, the relevant registers, including wage registers, were made available before the authority. The authority did not advert to wage registers and other registers produced by the petitioner. For all the afore reasons, Exts.P12 and P13 orders are liable to be set aside, urged the petitioner.

6. Government resisted the writ petition by filing a counter affidavit. On behalf of the Government, it is submitted that the petitioner was heard and was extended with opportunity to adduce evidence, before Ext.P12 order was passed. Once the minimum rate of wages is fixed for scheduled employment, employees in notified categories are entitled to be paid minimum wages fixed. The argument that the minimum wages calculated are not in accordance with the provisions of the Government notification, cannot be accepted.

7. The respondents pointed out that in the argument notes filed before the Minimum Wages Authority, the petitioner had no contention that the Minimum Wages were paid to the employees. The petitioner did not produce relevant documents nor examined the witnesses.

8. The respondents further submitted that going by the definition of the term 'employee' as appearing in the Minimum Wages Act , 1948, even managerial personnel would fall within the definition of employee. Therefore, there is nothing wrong in notifying minimum wages for the category of Managers, as has been done in Ext.P13.

9. In the judgment in Hindustan Sanitaryware and Industries Limited v. State of Haryana , [(2019) 5 SCC 774], the Hon'ble Apex Court has held that inclusion of Security inspector / Se