law: Minimum Wages Act, 1948
  2. Interpretation 
  In this Act unless there is anything
  
  repugnant in the subject or context –
  
  
  (a)
  
  "adolescent" means a person who has completed his fourteenth year of
  
  age but has not completed his eighteenth year;
  (aa) "adult"
  
  means a person who has completed his eighteenth year of age;
  (b) "appropriate
  
  government" means –
  (i) in relation to any
  
  scheduled employment carried on by or under the authority of the Central
  
  Government or a railway administration] or in relation to a mine oilfield or
  
  major port or any corporation established by a Central Act the Central
  
  Government and
  (ii) in relation to
  
  any other scheduled employment the State Government;
  (bb) "child"
  
  means a person who has not completed his fourteenth year of age;
  (c) "competent authority" means the authority appointed by the
  
  appropriate government by notification in its Official Gazette to ascertain
  
  from time to time the cost of living index number applicable to the employees
  
  employed in the scheduled employments specified in such notification;
  (d) "cost of
  
  living index number" in relation to employees in any scheduled employment
  
  in respect of which minimum rates of wages have been fixed means the index
  
  number ascertained and declared by the competent authority by notification in
  
  the Official Gazette to be the cost of living index number applicable to
  
  employee in such employment;
  (e)
  
  "employer" means any person who employs whether directly or through
  
  another person or whether on behalf of himself or any other person one or more
  
  employees in any scheduled employment in respect of which minimum rates of
  
  wages have been fixed under this Act and includes except in sub-section (3) of
  
  section 26 –
  (i) in a factory where
  
  there is carried on any scheduled employment in respect of which minimum rates
  
  of wages have been fixed under this Act any person named under clause (f) of
  
  sub-section (1) of section 7 of the Factories Act 1948 (63 of 1948) as manager
  
  of the factory;
  
  
  (ii) in any scheduled employment under the control of any government in India
  
  in respect of which minimum rates of wages have been fixed under this Act the
  
  person or authority appointed by such government for the supervision and control
  
  of employees or where no person or authority is so appointed the head of the
  
  department;
  (iii) in any scheduled
  
  employment under any local authority in respect of which minimum rates of wages
  
  have been fixed under this Act the persons appointed by such authority for the
  
  supervision and control of employees or where no person is so appointed the
  
  chief executive officer of the local authority;
  (iv) in any other case
  
  where there is carried on any scheduled employment in respect of which minimum
  
  rates of wages have been fixed under this Act any person responsible to the
  
  owner for the supervision and control of the employees or for the payment of
  
  wages;
  (f)
  
  "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
  (g) "schedule 
  
  employment" means an employment specified in the Schedule or any process or 
  
  branch of work forming part of such employment;
  (h) "wages" means all remuneration capable of being expressed in
  
  terms of money which would if the terms of the contract of employment express
  
  or implied were fulfilled be payable to a person employed in respect of his
  
  employment or of work done in such employment and includes house rent allowance
  
  but does not include –
  (i) the
  
  value of –
  (a) any house
  
  accommodation supply of light water medical attendance or
  (b) any other amenity
  
  or any service excluded by general or special order of the appropriate
  
  government;
  (ii) any contribution
  
  paid by the employer to any person fund or provident fund or under any scheme
  
  of social insurance;
  (iii) any traveling allowance or the value of any traveling concession;
  (iv) any sum paid to the person employed to defray special expenses entailed on
  
  him by the nature of his employment; or
  (v) any gratuity 
  
  payable on discharge;
  (i)
  
  "employee" means any person who is employed for hire or reward to do
  
  any work skilled or unskilled manual or clerical in a scheduled employment in
  
  respect of which minimum rates of wages have been fixed; and includes an
  
  out-worker to whom any articles or materials are given out by another person to
  
  be made up cleaned washed altered ornamented finished repaired adapted or
  
  otherwise processed for sale for the purposes of the trade or business of that
  
  other person where the process is to be carried out either in the home of the
  
  out-worker or in some other premises not being premises under the control and
  
  management of that other person; and also includes an employee declared to be
  
  an employee by the appropriate government; but does not include any member of
  
  the Armed Forces of the Union.