Revision of ceiling for payment of Bonus in Bonus Act 1965

Shiva Gopal Mishra
Secretary

National Council (Staff Side)

Joint Consultative Machinery

for Central Government Employees

13-C, Ferozshah Road, New Delhi - 110001

No.NC/JCM/2014

Dated: August 23, 2014

Shri Narendra Modi Ji,
Hon’ble Prime Minister,
Government of India,
New Delhi

Respected Sir,

Sub: Revision of ceiling for payment of Bonus in Bonus Act 1965

Payment of Bonus Act, 1965 was amended in the year 2007. This Act was called as Payment of Bonus (Amendment) Act, 2007. 

In Section 12 of the Principal Act (1965), payment of minimum bonus was revised from Rs.2500 to Rs.3500 w.e.f. 1st April, 2006 through Payment of Bonus(Amendment) Ordinance 2007(8 of 2007) and subsequently passed by the Parliament through Bill No.89/2007.

The Central Trade Unions and also the Constituent Organizations of Joint Consultative Machinery for Central Government employees raised the issue of amendment to the Section 12 of the Bonus Act, 1965 to remove the Ceiling of Rs.3500, mentioned in the Section 12 of the Payment of Bonus (Amendment) Act 2007. 

But so far the Government has not amended the Act to pay real wages to the workers as Bonus, which is causing lot of hardship to the workers due to high escalation of prices of all commodities after the enactment of the amendment to the Bonus Act 1965 in the year 2007.

You are, therefore, requested to consider the pleas made by the Central Trade Union Organizations and also the JCM Constituent Organizations for Central Government employees and amend the Section 12 of the Bonus Act, duly removing the ceiling mentioned in the Section 12 of the Payment of Bonus(Amendment) Act, 2007.

As Pooja Festival is fast approaching and orders for payment of Productivity Linked Bonus to Railway employees and Ex. gratia to other Central Government employees are likely to be issued shortly, you are further requested to propose to issue an ordinance with the approval of the President to amend Section 12 of the Payment of Bonus (Amendment) Act, 2007 so as to enable the Railwaymen and other Central Government employees to get real wages as Bonus.

(Shiva Gopal Mishra)

Source: http://ncjcmstaffside.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/JCM-letter-to-PM-on-PLB.pdf