WHAT SHOULD BE THE JUSTIFIABLE OR JUSTICIABLE WAGE FOR

BANK EMPLOYEES IN THE 11 BIPARTITE?

The most comprehensive criteria for covering all the basic needs were evolved
by the 15th Indian Labour Conference (ILC) in 1957 for fixing minimum wages.
The norms are that a need-based minimum wage for a single worker should cover
all the needs of a worker’s family consisting of a spouse and two children.

The food requirement was to be 2,700 calories, 65 grams of protein and around
45-60 grams of fat as recommended by Dr .Wallace Aykroyd for an average Indian
adult of moderate activity. Dr Aykroyd pointed out that animal proteins, such as
milk, eggs, fish, liver and meat, are biologically more efficient than vegetable
proteins and suggested that they should form at least one-fifth of the total protein.

Dr Aykroyd worked on nutrition for nearly 30 years and was director of the
Nutrition Division, Food and Agriculture Organisation, United Nations. In 1935, he
was appointed Director of the Government’s Nutritional Research Centre in India,
situated in Coonoor in the south.

The 15th ILC further resolved that clothing requirements should be based on per
capita consumption of 18 yards per annum, which gives 72 yards per annum for the
average worker’s family. For housing, the rent corresponding to the minimum
area provided under the government's industrial housing schemes was to be
taken. Fuel, lighting and other items of expenditure were to constitute an additional
20% of the total minimum wage.

The Supreme Court upheld these criteria in the case of Unichoy vs State of Kerala
in 1961. In the later Raptakos Brett Vs Workmen case of 1991, the SC went one
step further, and held that besides the five components enunciated by the
15th ILC, minimum wages should include a sixth component, amounting to
25% of the total minimum wage, to cover children's education, medical treatment,
recreation, festivals and ceremonies. The SC also observed that a wage structure
including the above six components would be “nothing more than minimum wage
at subsistence level” which the workers must get “at all times and under all
circumstances”.
 The Pay Commissions, agreed that the norms set by the 15th International
Labour Conference (ILC) are appropriate for computing minimum salary. It is
also observed that the minimum salary is applicable at the time a person joins the
Government which will usually be at a young age when a person may be just
married and will not have responsibility of parents or many children. Accordingly,
the family unit for minimum salary can only be taken as three. That became
the basis for wage increase of government employees in the 6th and 7th pay
commission also.

The Minimum Salary should be based on 6 units not three units as per 6th CPC
calculation. As both parents and two children are depending on the salary of
Government servant apart from spouse. the additional burden the employees will
carry after a few years of service as his parents would have retired from service
and are wholly dependent on him also his children would have stepped into school /
college level, even small baby requirements are much unlike in the past years, the
hence the minimum wage he gets will not compensate with the family financial
burden Hence the whole calculations needs a undergo a drastic change in next CPC
taking into account of 6 units rather than 3 units. However the 7th pay commission
retained consumption unit as 3. The 15th Indian Labour Conference has also
provided the norm of 3 consumption units. The Desai Award for bank employees in
the year 1962 felt that they would not be far wrong in calculating the initial pay as
the money value of 2.25 consumption units... After eight years of service, the
employee would be entitled to three consumption units, and at the 25 th year of
service, to 4 such units. Hence it would not be far wrong if we take uniform 3
consumption unit in the ensuing calculations.

The general minimum expenses per month for a family of four members are as
follows when a bank employee joins the duty with two small children:

a) Vegetables Rs 3000/-
b) Food Grains /Groceries Rs 7000/-
c) House rent single room Rs 6000/-
d) Clothing Rs 3000/-
e) Children education and their expenses Rs 2000/-
f) Electricity Chargers Rs 800/-
 g) Water Charges Rs 250/-
h) Transportation charges Rs 1000/-
i) TV cable rent Rs 300/-
j) Medical Expenses Rs 500/-
k) Mobile expenses Rs 250/-
l) Cooking Gas Rs 450/-
m) Recreation charges Rs 500/-
n) Personal expenses Rs 1000/-

Total Rs 26500/- Hence minimum wage works out to Rs 27,000/-

The expenses will increase as the age of bank employee goes up and family
responsibility will increase as he has to educate the children in professional
courses, marriage of his children has to be performed, his medical expenses
will increase, his parents will stay with him and now there are quite
dependent on the Government servant for their lively hood. As such the
salary should be more to meet his expenses. The Government is a model
employer hence the wages should be provided for bank employees who are
quasi government employees need based wages

Table:

The 11th bipartite settlement is due from 1st November 2017. Government of Indian
has already written a letter followed by a reminder to complete the negotiation
process to meet the timelines of 11th bipartite settlement date which is 1st November
2017. Bu we have not made any headway the effective date of the 10th bipartite is 1-
11-2012. Date of 10th bipartite is 25-05-2015. Taking into account then index as on
1-11-2017 is likely to be merged I have taken conservative estimate prices of
various commodities as on 1-6-2013 which is average between the years 2-12 to
2015 as a realistic conservative estimate. If we take the prices of 2017 which we
ought to have done then the minimum wage arrived at by the following method will
be much higher in leaps
Items Per day Per month Price Per kg. Total cost as
PCU 3CU as per per prevailing
(In grams) (In Kg) prevailing rates
market rates (in Rs)
(in Rs) 1/6/2013
1/6/13
At
Bangalore
Rice /wheat 475 42.75 55 2351
Dal (Toor/ 80 7.2 80 576
Urad/
moong
Raw Veg. 100 9.00 60 600
Greenleaf Veg 125 11.25 40 400
Other Veg. 75 6.75 45 450
Fruits 120 10.80 80 864
Milk 200 Ml 18 Lt. 35 630
Sugar and 56 5.00 45 225
Jaggery
Edible Oil 40 3.6 100 360
Fish 2.5 180 450
Meat 5.00 375 1875
Egg 90 04 360
Detergents 200 400 400
Clothing 5.5 Mt. 200 1100
Total 10641
Misc. @ 20%* 2660
Total 13301
Addl. Exp @ 3325
25%**
Total 16626
Housing @ 600ˆ
10%***
Grand 17226
Total

Source: Average market rates in Kolkata, Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai as indicated
in the Economic Times &
Other major dailies (element of 20% has been added to cover the increase in cost
in retail sale).

Notes PCU = Per day Consumption Unit 3CU = Three Consumption Units
that is wife, husband and a child no parents or second child is taken into
account.

* 20% Miscellaneous charges towards fuel, electricity, water etc.

** Additional Expense at the rate of 25% includes expenditure towards education,

Medical treatment, housing, recreation, festivals etc.

# Has been taken as Rs.400 because separate allowances for education, medical

Treatment and housing exist in the Government. Consequently, only the

expenditure

Towards recreation & festivals need to be taken in account.

^ Being the license fee chargeable for government accommodation at an average

rate of

3% of the basic pay.

Total minimum wage is Rs 17225+ HRA Rs 7000/- + Transportation

Allowance Rs 2500/-= Rs 26725 that is Rs 27,000/-

The fixation of minimum basic pay of Rs 21000/- is taking into the account of
minimum skill and education requirement as 10thStandard as prescribed by
the 6th CPC as applicable to sub staff in banks. As the education requirement
is more such as Diploma in Engineering or Degree in Science or Commerce,
then the minimum basic pay should be more Even if minimum basic pay of
sub staff is taken as Rs. 21000 then calculation of clerical pay can be deduced
by the Co-Efficient method prescribed in Sastry and Desai awards which is
still in force.
Para 5.81. of Desai award unambiguously states “Another question of importance
in connection with scales of pay relates to the extent of the difference in the cost of
living between the members of the subordinate staff and the members of the
clerical staff. The 80% coefficient is sometimes applied for determining the
remuneration payable to members of the clerical staff after determining the
amount of remuneration payable to members of the subordinate staff. The
genesis of the 80% coefficient can be traced to the award of Justice
Rajadhyaksha in the dispute between the Posts and Telegraphs Department
and its non-gazetted employees. The way in which Justice Rajadhyaksha arrived
at the co-efficient is stated in Para 148 of his award as follows (SEE Para 5.81fo
Desai award)

In the same Para of The Desai Award the minimum cost of living of a middle class
family is much higher than that of a working class family, that the cost of
education has risen to abnormal proportion and parents have to expend
considerably on the education higher secondary and college — of their children,
that the expenditure on clothing by employees recruited to the ministerial and
skilled cadres is far higher than that in a working class family, as such employees
are required to appear neatly dressed in the office and maintain decency and
decorum in dealing with the public, that the miscellaneous expenditure in the
family budget of middle class employees is considerable and is far in excess of that
in a working class family and that the minimum wage for a clerk was to be
obtained by multiplying the minimum wage of the lowest paid worker by the
Co-efficient of 1.80.(see 5.81 to 5.96 page 120 to 126of Desai award in the link
https://www.aibea.in/upload/publications/past_settlements/002.pdf)

If The minimum pay of sub staff is Rs 21000 the that of non-subordinate staff
i.e. clerical staff is 21000 X 1.80=37800 rounded off to 38000 and officers
salary can be calculated by taking the last sage salary of clerical staff as the
first stage salary of officers JM1and increments thereof as per practice in
vogue.
The pay scales should start with a minimum basic pay of Rs 21,000/- for
substafff and Rs.38000as minimum for clerks to end with scale vii officers
rs. 2, 10,000 with a ratio of 1:10 of minimum scale and maximum scale. Since
government is a model employer they should provide minimum wages as per
the 15 ILO conference to quasigovernment employees i.e bank employees who
have contributed to the growth of economy and other wages as per the
educational qualification & skill requirement of the job
Note:

1. The DIRECTORATE OF ECONONMICS & STATISTICS

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE & COOPERATION MINISTRY OF
AGRILCULTURE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA NEW DELHI has
published the RETAIL PRICES OF FOOD AND NON FOOD ITEMS
VIDE http://rpms.dacnet.nic.in/ PLEASE GO THROUGH THIS
IMPORTANT LINK . which contains district wise price report.

http://rpms.dacnet.nic.in/Bulletin.aspx

2. You can get any price of any article using the Query option.
http://rpms.dacnet.nic.in/QueryReport.aspx

3. The prices of many items provided in the above table are lower than the
retail prices provided by the Government agency

4. Hence the Minimum wage of Rs 21,000/for sub staff & Rs.38000as

minimum for clerks s mentioned above is justifiable /justiciable