FORM IX
Section 20 of Minimum Wages Act-1948
(1) The appropriate government may by notification in the Official Gazette appoint any Commissioner for Workmen’s Compensation or any officer of the Central Government exercising functions as a Labour Commissioner for any region or any officer of the State Government not below the rank of Labour Commissioner or any other officer with experience as a judge for a civil court or as a Stipendiary Magistrate to be the authority to hear and decide for any specified area all claims arising out of payment of less than the minimum rates of wages or in respect of the payment of remuneration for days of rest or for work done on such days under clause (b) or clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 13 or of wages at the overtime rate under section 14 to employees employed or paid in that area.
21. Single application in respect of a number of employees
(1) Subject to such rules as may be prescribed a single application may be presented under section 20 on behalf or in respect of any number of employees employed in the scheduled employment in respect of which minimum rates of wages have been fixed and in such cases the maximum compensation which may be awarded under sub-section (3) of section 20 shall not exceed ten times the aggregate amount of such excess or ten rupees per head as the case may be.
(2) The authority may deal with any number of separate pending applications presented under section 20 in respect of employees in the scheduled employments in respect of which minimum rates of wages have been fixed as a single application presented under sub-section (1) of this section and the provisions of that sub-section shall apply accordingly.
