About National Wage Boards for Working Journalists and Other Newspaper Employees

In the 1950s and 1960s, when the organized labour sector was at a nascent stage of its development without adequate unionization or with trade unions, without adequate bargaining power, the Government of India, in appreciation of the problems which arise in the arena of wage fixation due to absence of such bargaining power, constituted various Wage Boards.The Wage Boards are tripartite in character in which representative of workers,employers,independent members participate and finalize the recommendation. The Wage Boards for journalists and non - journalist newspaper and news-agency employees are statutory in nature.

2. The Working Journalists and other Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service) and Miscellaneous Provision Act,1955 (45 of 1995) (in short, the Act) provides for regulation of conditions of service of working journalists and non-journalist newspaper employees. The section 9 and Section 13 C of the Act, inter-alia, provide for constitution of two Wage Boards for fixing or revising rates of wages in respect of both working journalists and non-journalist newspaper employees, respectively. The Central Government shall, as and when considered necessary, constitute Wage Boards, which shall consists of

a) Three persons representing employers in relation to Newspaper Establishments

b) Three persons representing working journalists for the Wage Board constituted under Section 9 and persons representing non - journalist newspaper employees for the Wage Board constitute under Section 13C of the Act.

c) Four independent persons, one of whom shall be person who is, or has been, a judge of High Court or the Supreme Court, and who shall be appointed by the Government as the Chairman thereof

3. Since 1955, the Government of India has constituted 5 Wage Boards at regular intervals for the working journalist and non-journalist newspaper employees. The following table gives the details of the constitution of Wage Boards along other relevant information

S.NO Name of the Wage Board Date of appointment of the Wage Board Date on which final report was submitted to the Government Date of acceptance of the recommendations by the Government Remarks I Wage Board for Working Journalist 02-05-1956 NA 10-05-1957 DIVITIA WAGE BOARD II (a) Wage Boards for Working Journalists 12-11-1963 17-07-1967 27-10-1967 SHINDE WAGE BOARD (b) Wage Board for Non-journalist News paper Employees 25-02-1964 17-07-1967 18-11-1967 III (a) Wage Board for Working Journalists 11-06-1975 13-08-1980 26-12-1980 Was converted into One-Man Tribunal on 9th February 1979 (b) Wage Board for Non-Journalists Newspaper Employees 06-02-1976 13-08-1980 20-07-1981 IV Wage Boards for Working Journalists and Non-Journalist Newspaper Employees 17-07-1985 30-05-1989 31-08-1989 U.N. Bachavat Wage Board V Wage Boards for Working journalists and Non-Journalist Newspaper Employees 02-09-1994 25-07-2000 05-12-2000 and 15-12-2000 MANISANA WAGE BOARD VI Wage Boards for Working journalists and Non-Journalist Newspaper Employees 24.05.2007 NARAYANA KURUP WAGE BOARDS MAJITHIA WAGE BOARD W.E.F. 4/3/2009

4. The fast Wage Board, namely the Manisana Wage Board, was set up on 2nd September 1994, which submitted its report to the Government on 25th July, 2000. The Government accepted the recommendations of the Manisana Wage Board, and notified the same for implementation with minor modifications, vide Notifications dated 5.12.2000 and 15.12.2000. The prime responsibility for implementing the recommendations of the Wage Board rests with the concerned State Governments / Union Territories under the provision of the act.

5. The newspaper employee's unions have been demanding constitution of fresh Wage Boards as more than 10 years have been elapsed after the constitution of last Wage Board and they felt the last Wage Boards had not taken into consideration the boom in the newspaper sector on account of globalization and liberalization.

6. Although the Working Journalists and other Newspaper Employees(Condiitons of Service) and Miscellaneous Provisions act ,1955 does not say anything about the periodicity of consititution of Wage Boards ,it was felt that the time was ripe for consititution of fresh Wage Boards as more than 10 years have elapsed since the last Wage Board were constituted.

7. The Government of India ,after taking into consideration the requests of the interested groups and all concerned stakeholders,approved the proposal for constitution of two Wage Boards ,one for Working journalists and other for non-journalist newspaper employees, Under Sections 9 and 13C Respectively of the working Journalists and other Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service) and Miscellaneous Provisions act,1995

8. Thus two Wage Boards were constituted vide Notifications No. V-24040/3/2004-WB dated 24th May 2007 under the Chairmanship of Dr. Justice K .Narayana Kurup ,formerly Judge, High Court of Kerala and Acting chief Justice ,High Court of Madras .Shri K.M. Sahni ,former Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment has been appointed as full-time Member-Secretary of both the Wage Boards. Both the Wage Boards is indicated in the relevant notifications referred to above and displayed on this website. Consequent upon resignation of Dr. Justice K. Narayana Kurup , the Government of India has appointed Justice G.R. Majithia as Chairman of Wage boards vide Notification nos S.O. 580(E) and S.O. 581 (E) dated 28th February 2009.

9. Both the Wage Boards have started functioning from the premises of the upcoming new ofiice building of the Employee Provident Fund Organization at Sector - 23, Dwarka, New Delhi-110075, with effect from 1st November, 2007.