equal remuneration act- introduction, definition and other provisions

1. Equal Remuneration Act 1976
By
Dr. Sridevi Krishna
Asst. Professor
VVLC

2. • Article 39(a) states that the citizens, men and women,
equally, have the right to an adequate means of
livelihood.
• Article 15 guarantees a right against discrimination
• Article 15(3) recognizes ‘protective discrimination’ to
bring women at par with men in all possible respects.
• Article 16(2) makes a specific mention that “no citizen
shall on ground only of ….sex …be ineligible for or
discrimination against in respect of any employment or
office under state.”

3. Objectives of the act
• The equal remuneration act,1976 aims :
• 1. To pay equal remuneration to men and
• women workers.
• 2. To prevent discrimination, on the grounds of
• sex, against women in the matter of
• employment.
• 3. To provide increasing opportunity to women.
• 4. To set-up advisory committees to promote
• employment opportunities for women.

4. The salient features of the Equal
Remuneration Act, 1976
• 1. The Act is a Central Legislation and applies to
the whole of India.
• 2. Restricts the employer to create terms and
conditions in a contract of service or work of
labor contrary to equal pay for equal work
doctrine and the provisions of Equal
Remuneration Act.
• 3. The Act applies to all workers even if engaged
only for a day or few days.
• 4. The Ministry of Labor and The Central Advisory
Committee are responsible for enforcing this Act

5. • 5. When the employer doesn’t comply with
the provisions of the act, he will be liable to
pay fine, imprisonment, or both.
• 6. Any settlement or any agreement with the
employee that is harmful to the employee
isn’t allowed.

6. • 2(g) "remuneration" means the basic wage or
salary, and any additional emoluments
whatsoever payable, either in cash or in kind,
to a person employed in respect of
employment or work done in such
employment, if the terms of the contract of
employment, express or implied, were
fulfilled;

7. • (h) "same work or work of a similar nature"
means work in respect of which the skill,
effort and responsibility required are the
same, when performed under similar working
conditions, by a man or a woman and the
differences, if any, between the skill, effort
and responsibility required of a man and
those required to a woman are not of practical
importance in relation to the terms and
conditions of employment;

8. Section 4: The duty of the employer to pay equal remuneration to both men and women workers for same work or
work of similar nature
• No employer shall pay to any worker, employed by him
in an establishment or employment, remuneration,
cash or in kind at rates less favorable than those at
which he pays remuneration to the workers of the
opposite sex for performing the same work or work of
a similar nature.
• The rate of remuneration of any worker will not be
reduced to avoid complying with Section 4(1).
• In respect of any establishment, the rates of
remuneration payable before the commencement of
the Act for men and women for same or similar nature
work is different only on the ground of sex, then the
highest of the rates will be payable after the
commencement of the Act.

9. • Mackinnon Mackenzie and Co. Ltd.v. Audrey
D'Costa, AIR 1987 SUPREME COURT 1281,
• The applicability of the Act does not depend
upon the financial ability of the management to
pay equal remuneration as provided by it.
• The Act does not permit the management to pay
to a section of its employees doing the same
work or a work of similar nature lesser pay
contrary to section 4(1) of the Act only because it
is not able to pay equal remuneration to all.

10. Section 5: No discrimination to be made while recruiting men and women
workers
• For any recruitment or any condition of service after
recruitment like promotions, training or transfer, for
the same or similar nature work, the employer will not
make any discrimination against women except where
the employment of women in such work is prohibited
or restricted by or under any law for the time being in
force
• PROVIDED that the provisions of this section shall not
affect any priority or reservation for scheduled castes
or scheduled tribes, ex-servicemen, retrenched
employees or any other class or category of persons in
the matter of recruitment to the posts in an
establishment or employment.

11. C.B. Muthamma v. Union of India
• a complaint had been filed by the petitioner stating that she had
unconstitutionally been denied promotion to Grade I of the Indian Foreign
Service and further that at the time of joining foreign service the
petitioner had to give an undertaking that she would resign from the
Services if she got married.
• The petitioner challenged the constitutionality of Rule 8(2) of the Indian
Foreign Service (Conduct & Discipline) Rules, 1961, according to which a
women member had to get permission from the government before she
got married and that the woman member can be asked to resign if her
domestic commitments came in the way of discharging her duties in the
service.
• Rule 18(4) of the Indian Foreign Service (Recruitment Cadre, Seniority and
Promotion) Rules, 1961, further provided that no married woman was
entitled as of right to be appointed to the service.
• The government undertook to delete Rule 8(2) and stated that Rule 18(4)
had already been deleted. The Court directed the respondents to appoint
the petitioner to the deserved seniority. It is pertinent to mention that in
1979 when this case had been decided, the Equal Remuneration Act had
no provisions protecting women from discrimination during promotion,
training or transfer which was included by amendment only in 1987.

12. Bhagwan Dass & Others v. State of Haryana & Others, 1987
• The Court held that when it’s proved that the
nature of duties and functions discharged and
worked done similar, then the mode of
selection and period of appointment is
irrelevant and immaterial for the applicability
of equal pay for equal work.

13. 6. Advisory committee
• (1) For the purpose of providing increasing employment opportunities for
women, the appropriate government shall constitute one or more
advisory committees to advise it with regard to the extent to which
women may be employed in such establishments or employments as the
Central Government may, by notification, specify in this behalf.
• (2) Every advisory committee shall consist of not less than ten persons, to
be nominated by the appropriate government, of which one-half shall be
women.
• (3) In tendering its advice, the advisory committee shall have regard to the
number of women employed in the concerned establishment or
employment, the nature of work, hours of work, suitability of women for
employment, as the case may be, the need for providing increasing
employment opportunities for women, including part-time employment
and such other relevant factors as the committee may think fit.
• (4) The advisory committee shall regulate its own procedure.
• (5) The appropriate government may, after considering the advice
tendered to it by the advisory committee and after giving to the persons
concerned in the establishment or employment an opportunity to make
representations, issue such directions in respect of employment of women
workers, as the appropriate government may think fit.

14. S 7 Authorities for hearing and deciding
claims and complaints
• The appropriate Government may, by
notification, appoint such officers, not below
the rank of a Labour Officer, as it thinks fit to
be the authorities for the purpose of hearing
and deciding
• a) complaints with regard to the contravention
of any provision of this Act;
• b) claims arising out of non-payment of wages
at equal rates to men and women workers for
the same work or work of a similar nature.

15. Continued.
• In deciding any claim principle of natural justice
shall be followed.
• Every authority appointed under sub-section (1)
shall have all the powers of a civil court under the
Code of Civil Procedure 1978
• Any employer or worker aggrieved by any order
made by an authority appointed under sub-
section (1), on a complaint or claim may within
thirty days from the date of the order, prefer an
appeal

16. Maintenance of registers (Sec 8)
• Every employer is required to maintain
prescribed registers and documents in relation to
workers employed by him.
• category of workers
• Description of work
• No, if men employed
• Number of women employed
• Rate of remuneration
• Components of remuneration

17. 9. Inspectors
• (1) The appropriate government may, by
notification, appoint such persons as it may
think fit to be inspectors for the purpose of
making an investigation as to whether the
provisions of this Act, or the rules made
thereunder, are being complied with by
employers, and may define the local limits
within which an inspector may make such
investigation.

18. 10 (2)Penalties
• If, after the commencement of this Act,
• any employer—
• (a) makes any recruitment in contravention of the provisions of his
• Act, or
• (b) makes any payment or remuneration at unequal rates to men
and
• women worker, for the same work or work of a similar nature, or
• (c) makes any discrimination between men and women workers in
• contravention of the provisions of this Act, or
• (d) omits or fails to carry out any direction made by the appropriate
• Government under sub-section (5) of Section 6.
• HE SHALL BE PUNISHABLE:-
• a) WITH FINE of 10,000-20,000rs OR WITH IMPRISONMENT
• FOR 3months – 1year OR WITH BOTH FOR THE FIRST
• OFFENCE,
• b) AND WITH IMPRISONMENT WHICH MAY EXTEND TO TWO
• YEARS FOR THE SECOND AND SUBSEQUENT OFFENCES

19. S 10 (1)
• (1) If after the commencement of this Act, any
employer, being required by or under the Act, so to do-
• (a) omits or fails to maintain any register or other
document in relation to workers employed by him, or
• (b) omits or fails to produce any register, muster-roll or
other document relating to the employment of
workers, or
• (c) omits or refuses to give any evidence or prevents
his agent, servant, or any other person in charge of the
establishment, or any worker, from giving evidence, or
• (d) omits or refuses to give any information, he shall be
punishable 2[with simple imprisonment for a term
which may extend to one month or with fine which
may extend to ten thousand rupees or with both].

20. 15. Act not to apply in certain special
cases
• Nothing in this Act shall apply-
• (a) to cases affecting the terms and conditions of a
woman’s employment in complying with the
requirements of any law giving special treatment to
women, or
• (b) to any special treatment accorded to women in
connection with-
• (i) the birth or expected birth of a child, or
• (ii) the terms and conditions relating to retirement,
marriage or death or to any provision made in
connection with the retirement, marriage or death.