law: Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972
  2.Definitions.-
  In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,-
  (a) "appropriate Government" means,-
  (i) in relation to an establishment-
  (a) belonging to, or
  
  under the control of, the Central Government,
  (b) having branches in
  
  more than one State,
  (c) of a factory belonging to, or under the
  
  control of, the Central Government,
  
  
  (d) of a major port, mine, oilfield or railway company, the Central Government,
  (ii) in any other case, the State Government;
  (b) "completed year of service" means continuous
  
  service for one year;
  (c) "continuous service" means uninterrupted service
  
  and includes service which is interrupted by sickness, accident, leave, layoff,
  
  strike or a lock-out or cessation of work not due to any fault of the employee
  
  concerned, whether such interrupted or interrupted service was rendered before
  
  or after the commencement of this Act.
  Explanation I.- In the case of an employee who is not in
  
  uninterrupted service for one year, he shall be deemed to be in continuous
  
  service if he has been actually employed by an employer during the twelve
  
  months immediately preceding the year for not less than-
  (i) 190 days, if employed below the ground in a mine, or
  (ii) 240 days, in any other case, except when he is employed in
  
  a seasonal establishment.
  Explanation II .- An employee of a seasonal establishment
  
  shall be deemed to be in continuous service if he has actually worked for not
  
  less than seventh-five per cent of the numbers of days on which the
  
  establishment was in operation during the year.
  
  
  (d) "controlling authority" means an authority appointed by the
  
  appropriate Government under section 3;
  (e) "employee" means any person (other than an
  
  apprentice) employed on wages, not exceeding one thousand rupees per mensem, in
  
  any establishment, factory, mine, oilfield, plantation, port, railway company
  
  or shop, to do any skilled, semi-skilled, or unskilled, manual, supervisory,
  
  technical or clerical work, whether the terms of such employment are express or
  
  implied, but does not include any such person who is employed in a managerial
  
  or administrative capacity, or who holds a civil post under the Central
  
  Government or a State Government, or who is subject to the Air Force Act, 1950,
  
  (45 of 1950) the Army Act, 1950, (46 of 1950) or the Navy Act, 1957 (62 of
  
  1957).
  Explanation.- In the case of an employee, who having been
  
  employed for a period of not less than five years on wages not exceeding one
  
  thousand rupees per mensem, is employed at any time thereafter on wages
  
  exceeding one thousand rupees per mensem, gratuity, in respect of the period
  
  during which such employee was employed on wages not exceeding one thousand
  
  rupees per mensem, shall be determined on the basis of the wages received by
  
  him during that period;
  
  
  (f) "employer" means, in relation to any establishment, factory,
  
  mine, oilfield, plantation, port, railway company or shop-
  (i) belonging to, or under the control of, the
  
  Central Government or a State Government, a person or authority appointed by
  
  the appropriate Government for the supervision and control of employees, or
  
  where no person or authority has been so appointed, the head of the Ministry or
  
  the Department concerned,
  (ii) belonging to, or under the control of,
  
  any local authority, the person appointed by such authority for the supervision
  
  and control of employees or where no person has been so appointed, the chief
  
  executive officer of the local authority,
  (iii) in any other case, the persons, who, or
  
  the authority which, has the ultimate control over the affairs of the
  
  establishment, factory, mine, oilfield, plantation, port, railway company or
  
  shop, and where the said affairs are entrusted to any other person, whether
  
  called a manager, managing director or by any other name, such person;
  (g) "factory" has the meaning assigned to it in clause
  
  (m) of section 2 of the Factories Act, 1948 (63 of 1948);
  (h) "family", in relation to an employee, shall be
  
  deemed to consist of-
  (i) in the case of a male employee, himself,
  
  his wife, his children, whether married or unmarried, his dependent parents and
  
  the widow and children of his predeceased son, if any,
  (ii) in the case of a female employee,
  
  herself, her husband, her children, whether married or unmarried, her dependent
  
  parents and the dependent parents of her husband and the widow and children of
  
  her predeceased son, if any :
  
  Providedthat if a female employee, by a notice in writing to the
  
  controlling authority, expresses her desire to exclude her husband from her family,
  
  the husband and his dependent parents shall not longer be deemed, for the
  
  purposes of this Act, to be included in the family of such female employee
  
  unless the said notice is subsequently withdrawn by such female employee.
  
  Explanation.-Where the personal law of an employee permits the adoption
  
  by him of a child, any child lawfully adopted by him shall be deemed to be
  
  included in his family, and where a child of an employee has been adopted by
  
  another person and such adoption is, under the personal law of the person
  
  making such adoption, lawful, such child shall be deemed to be excluded from
  
  the family of the employee;
  (i) "major port" has the meaning assigned to it in
  
  clause (8) of section 3 of the Indian Ports Act, 1908 (15 of 1908);
  (j) "mine" has the meaning assigned to it in clause
  
  (j) of sub-section (1) of section 2 of the Mines Act, 1952 (35 of 1952);
  (k) "notification" means a notification published in
  
  the Official Gazette;
  (l) "oilfield" has the meaning assigned to it in
  
  clause (e) of section 3 of the Oilfields (Regulation and Development) Act, 1948
  
  (53 of 1948);
  (m) "plantation" has the meaning assigned to in clause
  
  (f) of section 2 of the Plantations Labor Act, 1951 (69 of 1951);
  (n) "port" has the meaning assigned to it in clause
  
  (4) of section 3 of the Indian Ports Act, 1908 (15 of 1908);
  (o) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under
  
  this Act;
  (p) "railway company" has the meaning assigned to it
  
  in clause (5) of section 3 of the Indian Railways Act, 1890 (9 of 1890);
  (q) "retirement" means termination of the service of
  
  an employee otherwise than on superannuation;
  
  
  (r) "superannuation", in relation to an employee, means,-
  (i) the attainment by the employee of such age
  
  as is fixed in the contract or conditions of service as the age on the
  
  attainment of which the employee shall vacate the employment; and
  (ii) in any other case, the attainment by the
  
  employee of the age of fifty-eight years;
  (s) "wages" means all emoluments which are earned by
  
  an employee while on duty or on leave in accordance with the terms and
  
  conditions of his employment and which are paid or are payable to him in cash
  
  and includes dearness allowance but does not include any bonus, commission,
  
  house rent allowance, overtime wages and any other allowance.