Government of Uttarakhand publishes fresh draft of Code on Wages Rules, 2026

The Government of Uttarakhand has published the fresh Draft of Uttarakhand Code on Wages Rules, 2026 (“Draft Rules”) on its website. The Draft Rules are issued under the Code on Wages, 2019 and are proposed to supersede the existing Uttarakhand (Uttar Pradesh) Payment of Wages Rules, 1936 and the Uttarakhand (Uttar Pradesh) Minimum Wages Rules, 1952.

The Draft Rules propose to:

1. Prescribe the methodology for fixation of minimum wages by:
   1. Treating a standard working-class family as three adult consumption units;
   2. Adopting a norm of 2,700 calories per consumption unit per day and 66 metres of cloth per family per year;
   3. Providing for residential rent at 10% of food and clothing expenditure;
   4. Treating fuel, electricity and other miscellaneous expenditure as 20% of minimum wages; and
   5. Including expenditure on children’s education, medical needs, entertainment and other incidental expenses at 25% of food and clothing expenditure.
2. Prescribe working hour norms, including a maximum of 10 working hours in a day, 48 hours in a week, mandatory rest intervals and regulation of overtime, subject to specified exceptions.
3. Provide for weekly rest days, substituted rest days, overtime wages for work on rest days and special provisions for employees working in five-day or six-day work weeks.
4. Prescribe conditions for night shift work and specify treatment of weekly rest and working hours for employees engaged in shifts extending beyond midnight.
5. Regulate payment of wages and deductions, including limiting total deductions to 50% of wages in a wage period, prescribing procedures for recovery of advances, deductions for damage or loss and recovery of Government-approved loans.
6. Mandate maintenance of statutory records and registers, including:
   1. Register of Wages, Advance Recovery, Overtime, Fine, Deduction for damage and Loss in Form-I;
   2. Employee register in Form-VI;
   3. Salary slips in Form-VII;
7. Require every employer covered under the Code to electronically file the prescribed annual return in the forms as specified under Occupational, Safety Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 and forward a copy electronically to the Labour Bureau, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India.

Source: Government of Uttarakhand