Provident Fund FAQ's
ANS : No. It is not permissible. Any such deduction is a criminal offence.
ANS : No. It is specifically barred under section-12 of the EPF & MP Act,1952.
ANS : After realising the dues, the PF members will be given full interest for each due month and it will in no way affect the interest due to members on the contributions paid. The employer shall be charged penal interest under section 7Q and penal damages under section 14B of the Act respectively.
ANS : The Provident Fund amount due to the member will be paid only to the extent of the amount realised from the employer.
ANS : No. It is totally prohibited.
ANS : Attachment of Bank Accounts, Realisation of dues from Debtors, Attachment & Sale of properties, Arrest and Detention of the Employer, Action under Section 406/409 of Indian Penal Code and Section 110 of Criminal Procedure Code, Prosecution under section 14 of the EPF & MP Act,1952.
ANS : The employer, before paying the member his wages, is required to deduct the PF contribution from his wages and pay to the Regional PF Commissioner. As such PF can be deducted.
ANS : Yes. The contribution card of each member in Form 3-A/ECR copy can be demanded from the employer.
ANS : It is the duty of the principal employer to ensure that the Contractor discharges his liability. The Principal Employer must allow payment of bills after ensuring that the Contractor has enrolled and complied in respect of all eligible contract employees every month. The Principle Employer can check the remittance and employee name by using the Establishment Search option.If the Principal Employer ensures that all contract employees activate their Universal Account Number (UAN), then any default by the contractor can be nipped in the bud.
ANS : It is the duty of the employer to attest the application form. In case of any dispute, the member may attain attestation preferably from the bank in which he has maintained his account and thereafter submit the same to Regional PF Commissioner, explaining the reasons for not obtaining the signature of the employer. The Regional P.F. Commissioner will pursue the matter with the employer wherever necessary. If the member has activated his Universal Account Number and linked his bank account and Aadhaar then he can submit composite claim (Aadhaar) which only requires the signature of the member.
ANS : The local RPFC will ensure transfer of securities/cash and arrange for refund of dues to the members.
ANS : If past accumulations are not transferred on cancellation of exemption, how the provident fund amount is paid to the members
ANS : The Annual P.F. Statement of Account/Member Passbook will indicate the amount paid by the employer. The default period in a year is thus made known to the members. In the current scenario if the member has activated her/his UAN the non-payment/payment of contributions can be verified every month through the e-passbook. Currently, members also receive sms on their registered mobile phones on credit of monthly contribution into their PF account.
ESIC FAQ's
ANS : Yes, it is the statutory responsibility of the employer under Section 2A of the Act read with Regulation 10-B, to register their Factory/ Establishment under the ESI Act within 15 days from the date of its applicability to them.
ANS : The Factory or Establishment to which the Act applies is to be registered by logging into ESIC Portal i.e. www.esic.in within 15 days from the date of its applicability to them The employer is supposed to sign up, providing factory/Establishment name, Address Principal employer’s name, Bank Account, PAN, use of power in case of of factory ,State and region as well as e mail address. The employer trying to register would get a user ID and a password through his mail ID. The employer can log in to www.esic.in . His mail ID can also be used as user ID and the password received has to be accessed from the mail box can be used to register his unit by providing information in the Portal. Automatically a 17 digit code number is generated after successful registration.
ANS : If the wages of an employee (excluding remuneration for overtime work) exceeds the wage limit prescribed by the Central Government after start of contribution period, he continues to be an employee till the end of that contribution period and the contribution is to be deducted and paid on the total wages earned by him.
ANS : The Employer has to submit following records:
1 Accident Report: Notice of Accident to the concerned Branch office in Form -12 should be submitted on-line within 24 hours.
2 Abstention verification Report: It is required to be submitted to the Branch office as and when it is sought by the Branch Manager in respect of any IP.
3. Records including attendance, wages and books of accounts etc. in respect of principal employer and records of immediate employer as required by the Labour Laws.
Payment of Bonus Act, 1965 FAQ's
ANS : No. New establishments are given infancy protection of 5 years to come under the purview of Bonus Act. However, the new establishments earning profits within the infancy period of 5 years shall pay the bonus for the accounting years in which they earn profits.
ANS : Register in Form A – Computation of allocable surplus.
Register in Form B – Set-on and set-off of allocable surplus.
Register in Form C – Bonus paid to the employees for the accounting year.
ANS : Minimum bonus of 8.33%. Maximum bonus of 20% of bonus on the wages earned by an employee in the accounting year.
ANS : Any person contravenes the provisions of the Act and the rules made there under shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months or with fine with may extend to Rs.1000/- or with both.
ANS : Bonus should be paid within 8 months from end of financial year.
Statutory Bonus under The Payment of Bonus Act, 1965 FAQ's
ANS : Yes, such employee is eligible for payment of Statutory Bonus.
ANS : Yes, the establishment, once attaining applicability, is covered and Statutory Bonus is to be paid for eligible employees.
ANS : As per Section 15 of the Act, “Establishment in private sector” means any establishment other than establishment in public sector. IT companies also mandatorily need to pay statutory bonus for eligible employees.
ANS : 60 days shall not be covered in that Accounting Year for arriving at the final Statutory Bonus, as the Insured person is availing benefit from ESIC. There is no clarity from the provisions of Act, similar to Maternity Benefit, which would be deemed as worked days.
ANS : Yes, they are not excluded under the Act.
Minimum Wages Act, 1948 FAQ's
ANS : The employer must pay every employee wages as fixed by the Government.
(a) Wages must be paid in cash (current coins or currency notes, or both)/ after obtaining the authorization, it can even be paid either by cheque or by crediting the wages in employee’s bank account.
(b) For the fixation of Minimum Wages, the employment must have been in Schedule originally or added to the Schedule by a notification under Section 27 of the Act.<
(c) The employer can take actual work on any day up to 9 hours in a 12 hours shift, but he must pay double the rate for any hour or part of an hour of actual work in excess of 9 hours or for more than 48 hours in any week.
(d) Once a Minimum Wage is fixed according to the provisions of the Act, the employer must pay to every employee engaged in a Scheduled employment, Minimum Wages notification for that class of employees.
(e) The employer should fix wage-period for the payment of wages at intervals not exceeding one month or such other larger period as may be prescribed.
(f) Where less than 1000 persons are employed, it would be paid before the expiry of the 7th day of the following month. And where more than 1000 workers, it would be paid before the expiry of the 10th day of the following month.
(g) The employer should pay the wages to a person discharged not later than the second working day after his discharge.
(h) Every employer should maintain a register of wages at workplace specifying the following particulars for each wage period in respect of each employed person:
i. Minimum rate of wages payable.
ii. The number of days in which overtime was worked.
iii. The gross wages.
iv. The wages actually paid and the date of payment.
(i) Every employer should get the signature or the thumb impression of every person employed on the wage book and the wage slips.
(j) The employer should exhibit at main entrance to the establishment and its offices, a notice in respect of the following in English and local language:
i. Minimum rate of Wages.
ii. Abstracts of the Acts and rules made there under.
iii. Name and address of the Labour Inspector/ Asst. Commissioner of Labour etc.
ANS : The Officers from the rank of Asst. Labour Officers, Asst. Commissioners of Labour, Dy. Commissioners of Labour, etc. are Inspectors under the said Act.
ANS : (a) The Act applies to persons engaged in scheduled employments or in specified class of work in respect of which minimum wages have been fixed.
(b) No employee can give up by contract or agreement his rights in so far as it purports to reduce the minimum rates of wages fixed under the Act.
Hence, any contract or agreement made less than the minimum rates of wages fixed shall be null and void.
ANS : It was recommended in the Labour Ministers’ Conference held in 1988, to evolve a mechanism to protect wages against inflation by linking it to rise in the Consumer Price Index. The Variable Dearness Allowance came into being in the year 1991. The allowance is revised twice a year, once on 1st April and then on 1st October. In the State Sphere, 26 States/Union Territories have provisions for Variable Dearness Allowance, at present.
ANS : The Authorities and claim amount is mentioned below:-
ACL : Claims not exceeding Rs.20,000/-
DCL : Claims above Rs.20,000/- and not exceeding Rs.50,000/-
JCL : Claims above Rs.50,000/-
Addl.CL : Any claim irrespective amount of claim.
Maharashtra Labour Welfare Fund Act FAQ's
ANS : The act becomes applicable to an establishment if the no of employees cross the magic figure of 5 in the establishment.
ANS :If within 15 days from the date on which the act shall come into force in any area, every employer in such area shall pay by cheque, money order or cash to the Welfare Commissioner-
a) All fines realized from the employees before the said date and remaining unutilized on that date, and
b) All unpaid accumulations held by the employer on the aforesaid date.
2) The employer shall along-with such payment submit a statement to the Welfare Commissioner giving full particulars of the amount so paid.
3) Thereafter all fines realized from the employees and all unpaid accumulations during the quarter ending 31st march, 30th June, 30th September and 31st December shall be paid by the employer in the manner aforesaid to the welfare commissioner on or before 15th of April, 15th of July, 15th of October and 15th of January succeeding such quarter and a statement giving particulars of the amounts so paid shall be submitted by him along-with such payment to the Welfare Commissioner.
3-A) The Employer shall submit to the Welfare commissioner on or before 31st of July and 31st of January a statement of employer’s contribution and employee’s contribution in respect of employees whose names stand on the establishment register on 30th June and 31st December, respectively in Form’A1’.
ANS :The contribution recovered from the salary of June & December along-with employer’s contribution must to be deposited with the “welfare Fund Commissioner” in Form A-1 (challan cum return in Form A-1) on or before 15th January respectively. In case of cheque is to be drawn in favour of the “Welfare Commissioner, Maharashtra Labour Welfare Board” and must be deposited at the following address.