Government of Himachal Pradesh issues draft Code on Wages (Himachal Pradesh) Rules, 2026 gets issued

The Government of Himachal Pradesh has issued the draft of Code on Wages (Himachal Pradesh) Rules, 2026 (“Draft Rules”). These Draft Rules extend to the whole State of Himachal Pradesh and will come into force on the date of their final publication in the e-Gazette. It proposes to supersede the Payment of Wages Act, 1936 rules, Minimum Wages Act, 1948 rules, and Himachal Pradesh Ease of Compliance to Maintain Registers under various Labour Laws Rules, 2020.

Stakeholders may submit objections or suggestions, if any, within 30 days from the date of publication in the Rajpatra (e-gazette) of Himachal Pradesh, through the following modes:

1. By Post – To the Directorate of Labour & Employment, New Himrus Building, Near Himland Hotel, Shimla-171001;
2. By email – lep-hp@nic.in.

The Draft Rules propose to:

1. Fix minimum wages using a standard family of 3 adult consumption units, 2700 calories per day per consumption unit, 66 meters per year per standard working class family, housing rent expenditure to constitute at 10% of food/clothing, fuel and miscellaneous items at 20%, and education, medical, and recreation at 25% of minimum wage.
2. Set normal working day at 8 hours of work and one or more intervals of rest which in total must not exceed 1 hour,
3. Arrange working day of an employee in a manner that it is inclusive of the intervals of rest, if any, and it must not spread over more than 12 hours on any day.
4. Provide an employee a day of rest every week which must ordinarily be Sunday, but the employer may fix any other day of the week as the rest day for any employee or class of employees.
5. Prescribe conditions for allowing night shift work..
6. Regulate payment of wages, claims and bonus by limiting total deductions to 50% of monthly wages (with carry forward of any excess), and prescribing procedures for fines, deductions for damage or loss, and recovery of advances.
7. Impose wage related record keeping and procedural requirements on employers by mandating maintenance of:
   • Employee Register (Form I);
   • Wages/Overtime/Fines/Deductions (Form IV);
   • Attendance-cum-Muster Roll (Form IX);
   • Wage slips (Form V);
   • Annual return through OSH Code portal.

Source: Government of Himachal Pradesh