Labour Law MCQs for CLAT PG, Page 3

Correct answer: A. She must have actually worked in the establishment for not less than eighty days in the twelve months immediately preceding the date of her expected delivery

The passage states directly: 'a woman is entitled to maternity benefit only if she has actually worked in the establishment of the relevant employer for not less than eighty days in the twelve months immediately preceding the date of her expected delivery.' This eighty-day threshold within the relevant twelve-month window is the specific qualifying period described.

Source note: Maternity Benefit Act - Qualifying Period for Eligibility

Correct answer: B. The amendment increased the maximum duration of paid maternity benefit from twelve weeks to twenty-six weeks, with the period of leave availed before the expected delivery date not exceeding eight weeks, with the remainder to be availed after delivery

The passage states the amendment 'increased the maximum duration of paid maternity benefit from twelve weeks to twenty-six weeks for women having fewer than two surviving children, with the proviso that the period of leave availed before the expected date of delivery shall not exceed eight weeks, leaving the remainder to be availed after delivery.' This precise structure (26 weeks total, max 8 weeks pre-delivery) is the key change for this category.

Source note: 2017 Amendment - Duration of Maternity Benefit

Correct answer: B. For women with two or more surviving children, the amendment retained the shorter duration of twelve weeks, with a maximum of six weeks permissible before the expected delivery date, reflecting an embedded population and family planning policy consideration

The passage explicitly draws this distinction: 'For women who already have two or more surviving children, the amendment retained the shorter duration of twelve weeks, with a maximum of six weeks permissible before the expected delivery date, reflecting an embedded population and family planning policy consideration within the statutory leave structure.' This is presented as a deliberate policy choice connecting maternity benefit duration to family planning considerations.

Source note: Distinction Based on Number of Surviving Children

Correct answer: B. A 'commissioning mother' (a biological mother whose egg creates an embryo implanted in another woman in a surrogacy arrangement) and an 'adopting mother' who legally adopts a child below three months of age, both entitled to maternity benefit for twelve weeks from the date the child is handed over

The passage states the amendment extended benefit 'to a commissioning mother, defined as a biological mother who uses her own egg to create an embryo implanted in another woman in a surrogacy arrangement, and to an adopting mother who legally adopts a child below the age of three months. Both categories are entitled to maternity benefit for a period of twelve weeks calculated from the date the child is handed over to the relevant mother.'

Source note: Commissioning and Adopting Mothers

Correct answer: B. Section 11A requires every establishment having a prescribed number of employees to provide a creche facility within a prescribed distance, and obligates the employer to permit the woman four visits a day to the creche, inclusive of the interval for rest otherwise allowed to her

The passage states: 'Section 11A, requiring every establishment having a prescribed number of employees to provide a creche facility within a prescribed distance, either independently or in conjunction with shared common facilities, and obligating the employer to permit the woman four visits a day to the creche, inclusive of the interval for rest otherwise allowed to her.' The specific detail that the four visits include the existing rest interval (rather than being entirely additional time) is a precise feature highlighted in the passage.

Source note: Section 11A - Creche Facility Requirement

Correct answer: B. Ten or more workers where the manufacturing process is carried on with the aid of power, or twenty or more workers where the manufacturing process is carried on without the aid of power

The passage states the definition 'using a dual threshold depending on whether the manufacturing process is carried on with the aid of power (ten or more workers) or without such aid (twenty or more workers).' This power-based distinction in the numerical threshold is explicitly described.

Source note: Dual Threshold for Factory Definition

Correct answer: B. Section 51 restricts weekly working hours to a maximum of 48 hours, Section 54 limits daily working hours to a maximum of 9 hours, and Section 56 ordinarily restricts the spread over (total period including rest intervals) to 10.5 hours, subject to the Chief Inspector's limited power to extend it

The passage specifies all three limits precisely: 'Section 51 restricts weekly working hours to a maximum of 48 hours, while Section 54 limits daily working hours to a maximum of 9 hours. Section 56 addresses the concept of spread over...ordinarily restricting this spread over to 10.5 hours, subject to the Chief Inspector's limited power to extend it for specified reasons.'

Source note: Working Hours Limits and Spread Over

Correct answer: B. The requirement to pay overtime wages at twice the ordinary rate serves both a compensatory function for the additional burden on the worker and a deterrent function discouraging employers from routinely exceeding the statutory working hour limits

The passage states: 'Section 59 mandates payment of overtime wages at twice the worker's ordinary rate of wages, serving both a compensatory function for the additional burden and a deterrent function discouraging employers from routinely exceeding the statutory limits.' This dual compensatory-deterrent rationale is explicitly identified.

Source note: Overtime Wages - Dual Function

Correct answer: B. Section 67 imposes an absolute prohibition on the employment of any child who has not completed his fourteenth year in any factory, reflecting heightened concern for child safety in what is considered an inherently more hazardous work environment compared to many other settings

The passage states: 'Section 67 imposes an absolute prohibition on the employment of any child who has not completed his fourteenth year in any factory, reflecting heightened concern for child safety in what is considered an inherently more hazardous work environment compared to many other settings.' The word 'absolute' (as opposed to a mere restriction or regulated permission) is the key characterisation.

Source note: Section 67 - Absolute Prohibition for Children

Correct answer: B. Section 87 allows for targeted regulatory restrictions calibrated to the specific risks associated with particular hazardous operations, rather than applying a single undifferentiated standard uniformly to every worker regardless of the actual hazard profile of the relevant process

The passage's concluding sentence describes the calibrated nature of Section 87: it 'empowers the State Government to make rules prohibiting or restricting the employment of women, adolescents, or children in any manufacturing process or operation found to expose them to serious risk...allowing for targeted regulatory restrictions calibrated to the specific risks associated with particular hazardous operations, rather than a single undifferentiated standard applied uniformly to every worker regardless of the actual hazard profile of the relevant process.' This contrast between targeted and uniform regulation is the key analytical point.

Source note: Section 87 - Targeted vs Uniform Regulation

Correct answer: A. The employee must have worked in the establishment for not less than thirty working days in that accounting year

The passage states: 'every employee is entitled to be paid bonus by his employer in respect of an accounting year, provided he has worked in the establishment for not less than thirty working days in that accounting year, a relatively modest qualifying threshold.' The passage explicitly characterises this 30-day threshold as comparatively modest relative to other labour statutes.

Source note: Qualifying Period for Bonus Eligibility

Correct answer: B. Section 10 mandates a minimum bonus of 8.33% of salary or wages (or a prescribed minimum amount, whichever is higher), payable even in years where the employer has suffered a loss, reflecting that bonus carries a guaranteed minimum statutory floor that does not depend on the employer's actual profit or loss position for that specific year

The passage states explicitly: 'Section 10 mandates a minimum bonus of 8.33% of the salary or wages earned by the employee during the accounting year, or a prescribed minimum rupee amount, whichever is higher, payable even in years where the employer has suffered a loss, reflecting the legislative judgment that bonus...nonetheless carries a guaranteed minimum statutory floor that does not depend on the employer's actual profit or loss position for that specific year.' This guaranteed-floor characteristic, independent of profitability, is the key point.

Source note: Minimum Bonus - Payable Regardless of Profit or Loss

Correct answer: B. The maximum bonus is payable where the available surplus calculated under the Act's prescribed formula exceeds the amount required to pay the minimum bonus, with the actual bonus percentage between the statutory minimum and maximum determined by the calculation of allocable surplus in accordance with the formula and schedules prescribed under the Act

The passage states: 'Section 11...provides for a maximum bonus of 20% of salary or wages, payable where the available surplus calculated under the Act's prescribed formula exceeds the amount required to pay the minimum bonus, with the actual bonus percentage falling between the statutory minimum and maximum determined by the calculation of allocable surplus in accordance with the formula and schedules prescribed under the Act.' This establishes both the trigger condition for the maximum and the mechanism for determining the actual rate within the min-max band.

Source note: Maximum Bonus and Allocable Surplus

Correct answer: B. Eligibility for bonus may extend up to a certain wage level (the eligibility ceiling), but for employees whose wages exceed a separate, specified calculation ceiling, the bonus amount itself may be computed with reference to that lower, notional ceiling figure rather than the employee's actual, higher wage, ensuring the scheme remains both inclusive for eligibility purposes and administratively workable and consistent with the profit-sharing rationale for calculation purposes

The passage explains: 'Eligibility for bonus may extend up to a certain wage level (the eligibility ceiling, subject to periodic governmental revision), but for employees whose wages exceed a separate, specified calculation ceiling, the bonus amount itself may be computed with reference to that lower, notional ceiling figure rather than the employee's actual, higher wage. This dual-ceiling structure...ensures the scheme remains both inclusive in determining who is covered and administratively workable and consistent with the underlying profit-sharing rationale when calculating the actual bonus amount payable.'

Source note: Dual-Ceiling Structure - Eligibility vs Calculation

Correct answer: B. The Code on Wages, 2019 has absorbed the substantive provisions of the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965 into a single consolidated wage code, while broadly retaining the underlying minimum-maximum bonus structure and the wage ceiling mechanism

The passage's final sentence states: 'The Code on Wages, 2019 has since absorbed the substantive provisions of the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965 into a single consolidated wage code, while broadly retaining this underlying minimum-maximum bonus structure and the wage ceiling mechanism.' This describes a structural consolidation (absorption into a unified code) while preserving the substantive minimum-maximum and ceiling features described throughout the passage.

Source note: Code on Wages 2019 - Absorption of the Bonus Act

Correct answer: B. India's labour law framework was historically characterised by a multiplicity of central enactments, each addressing a particular aspect of the employment relationship, enacted at different points across nearly a century with varying drafting styles, definitions, and compliance mechanisms, generating significant complexity for both employers and workers

The passage opens by describing the motivating problem: 'India's labour law framework has historically been characterised by a multiplicity of central enactments, each addressing a particular aspect of the employment relationship, often enacted at different points across nearly a century of legislative history and reflecting varying drafting styles, definitions, and compliance mechanisms. This fragmentation generated significant complexity for both employers...and workers.'

Source note: Reason for Codification - Fragmentation Problem

Correct answer: B. The floor wage empowers the Central Government to fix a wage floor having regard to minimum living standards, below which no minimum wage fixed by any appropriate government for any scheduled employment can fall, addressing long-standing concerns about wide and sometimes arbitrary disparities in minimum wage rates across different states

The passage states: 'A significant innovation introduced by this Code is the concept of a national floor wage, empowering the Central Government to fix a wage floor having regard to minimum living standards, below which no minimum wage fixed by any appropriate government for any scheduled employment can fall, addressing long-standing concerns about wide and sometimes arbitrary disparities in minimum wage rates across different states.'

Source note: Code on Wages - Floor Wage Innovation

Correct answer: B. The Code introduced, for the first time at the central legislative level, a statutory framework for recognition of a negotiating union or negotiating council for collective bargaining purposes, addressing a long-standing gap previously highlighted in case law holding that the Trade Unions Act, 1926 itself imposed no obligation on employers to recognise a registered union

The passage states: 'This Code introduced, for the first time at the central legislative level, a statutory framework for recognition of a negotiating union or negotiating council for collective bargaining purposes, addressing a long-standing gap previously highlighted in case law holding that the Trade Unions Act, 1926 itself imposed no obligation on employers to recognise a registered union.' This directly references the gap previously discussed in case law regarding union recognition (such as in the Food Corporation of India Staff Union case).

Source note: Industrial Relations Code - Negotiating Union Innovation

Correct answer: B. The Code increased the threshold from 100 workers under the erstwhile Industrial Disputes Act to 300 workers

The passage states: 'The Code also revised the threshold for mandatory prior government permission before lay-off, retrenchment, or closure, increasing it from 100 workers under the erstwhile Industrial Disputes Act to 300 workers.' This numerical increase (100 to 300) is the specific change described.

Source note: Threshold Change for Government Permission

Correct answer: B. The four codes are organised thematically: the Code on Wages addresses wage-related statutes (Payment of Wages, Minimum Wages, Bonus, Equal Remuneration); the Industrial Relations Code addresses collective relations statutes (Trade Unions, Standing Orders, Industrial Disputes); the Code on Social Security addresses social security statutes (epf, esi, Employees Compensation, Maternity Benefit, Gratuity); and the Occupational Safety Health and Working Conditions Code addresses workplace safety and conditions statutes (Factories, Mines, Contract Labour, and various sector-specific enactments)

The passage's overall structure, read as a whole, demonstrates this thematic organisation: it describes the Code on Wages consolidating wage-related statutes, the Industrial Relations Code consolidating collective relations statutes, the Code on Social Security consolidating social security statutes, and the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code consolidating workplace safety and conditions statutes, with each paragraph of the passage dedicated to one of these four thematically organised codes and its constituent absorbed enactments.

Source note: Overall Structure of the Four Codes