CONTENTS - Central Public Works Department

214 SECTION 34
SECTION 34
FAIR WAGE CLAUSE AND CPWD CONTRACTOR’S LABOUR REGULATIONS
34.1 Provision of Act
(1) The Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970 applies to every establishment in which
20 or more workers are employed or were employed on any day of the preceding 12 months as
contract labour, and to every contractor who employs or who employed on any day of the preceding
12 months; 20 or more workmen. The Act also provides for registration of establishment and
Licensing of Contractors. Accordingly, every principal employer is to make an application to the
Registering Officer for registration of the establishment. Section 9 of the Act lays down that no
principal employer of an establishment, required to be registered under Section 7 but which has
not been registered within the prescribed time limit, shall employ contract labour after the date.
(2) It has been clarified by the Ministry of Labour that the 20 contract labourers can be through one or
more contractors, and it does not matter that a single contractor may not be employing 20 or more
contract workers. It is sufficient that a total of 20 contract workers (through contractors) are working
in an establishment of Principal Employer.
(3) If a contractor employs 20 or more workmen on any day in the preceding year, the contractor is
legally bound to take license from the Licensing Officer i.e., Assistant Labour Commissioner
(Central).
(4) As required under Section 2 (i) (g) of the Act, the Ministry has decided to declare every Divisional
Officer (Executive Engineer or Deputy Director of Horticulture) or any Sub-Divisional Officer incharge
of an independent Sub-Division as “Principal Employer”.
(5) The fees to be paid for the grant of Certificate of Registration shall be as prescribed under the Act.
(6) In pursuance of Section 12 of the Act, no contractor to whom the said Act applies, shall undertake
or execute any work through contract labour except under and in accordance with a license
issued in that behalf by the Licensing Officer.
34.2 Acts/Omissions
(1) The Appropriate authority in terms of Section 6 (ii) of the Central P.W.D. Contractors’ Labour
Regulations to approve the list of acts and omissions for which fines are liable to be imposed is the
“Chief Labour Commissioner.”
(2) The list of acts and omissions for which fines can be imposed on workers by contractors is given
in the General Conditions of Contract.
34.3 Fair wages
(1) The term ‘Fair wages’ under CPWD Contractors’ Labour Regulations means wages fixed and
notified under the provisions of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 from time to time. The fair wages
clause is applicable only to those employees whose wages do not exceed the limit prescribed in
the Act.
(2) It should be the duty of the Labour Officer to make enquiries about non-payment of wages for
preventing wages’ claims of contractors’ labour falling in arrears. For this purpose, it is essential
that Labour Officer should make frequent site inspections, as this is the only way of contacting
Labour in the field and thus preventing wages falling in arrears. Any case of accumulation of
arrears should be specifically brought to the notice of the Executive Engineer and Superintending
Engineer for enquiry.
(3) The responsibility for identification of labour rests with the Labour Officer. He will, however, be
afforded all assistance by the Junior Engineers.
(4) The contractor shall also abide by the provisions of the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation)
Act, 1986. No labour below the age of fourteen years shall be employed on the work.