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Unit 8: Payment of Wages Act, 1936

Sec. 21 (2) provides furthers that before sanctioning the making of a complaint against any Notes
person for an offence, the authority empowered under Sec. 15 or the Appellate Court, as the case
may be, shall give an opportunity to such person of showing cause against the granting of such
sanction. The sanction shall not be granted if such person satisfied the authority or Court that his
default was due to:
(a) a bona fide error or bona fide dispute as to the amount payable to the employed person; or
(b) the occurrence of an emergency or the existence of exceptional circumstances; or
(c) the failure of the employed person to apply for or accept payment

Sec 21 (3) provides that no Court shall take cognizance of a contravention of any rule made
under Sec 26, except on a complaint made by or with the sanction of an Inspector under Act.
Sec 21 (4) provides that in imposing any fine for an offence under Sec. 20(1) the Court shall take
into consideration the amount of any compensation already awarded against the accused in any
proceedings taken under Sec. 15.

Bar for Suit (Sec. 22)

This section provides that a suit for the recovery of wages or of any wrongful deduction from
wages shall not be entertained by any Court under the following circumstances.
(a) The amount claimed forms the subject of an application under sec. 15 which has been presented
by the plaintiff and is pending before the authority appointed under this section or of an appeal
under Sec 17; or
(b) The amount claimed had formed the subject of a direction under Sec. 15 in favour of the
plaintiff; or
(c) The amount claimed had been adjudged in any proceeding under Sec. 15 not to be owed to the
plaintiff; or
(d) The amount claimed could have been recovered by an application under Sec. 15

Protection of Action taken in Good-faith (Sec.22 A)

A suit, prosecution, or the other legal proceeding shall not lie against the Government or any
officer of the Government for any thing which is in good-faith done or intended to be done
under this Act.

Contracting Out (Sec. 23)

Any contract or agreement whether made before or after the commencement of this Act, whereby
an employed person relinquishes any right conferred by this Act shall be null and void insofar
as it purports to deprive him of such right. Sec 23 only prevents an employee from contracting
away the rights which are given to him by the Act and that it does not prevent him from entering
into an agreement advantageous or beneficial- to him. (Case: F.W. Heilgers Co. v. Nagesh Chandra
Chakrawarti, AIR 1949, FC 142) In a decision of the Court (In Dinaram Chutiya v. Divisional Manager,
AIR 1958), it was held that the mere deduction of allowance either partial or whole cannot be
said to contravene Sec. 23 of the Act. It was further observed in this case that a contract validly
entered into between the employer and the employee by whom the contract of service has been
modified as regards the amount of wages is not hit by Sec. 23. This Act confers the following
subject: (i) to receive wages; (ii) to receive them at the proper time specified in the Act; and (iii)
to receive from without deduction.

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