The West Bengal Workmen's House-rent Allowance Act, 1974

GOVERNMENT OF WEST BENGAL 
LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 
West Bengal Act LVI of 1974 
THE WEST BENGALWORKMEN'S HOUSE-RENT 
ALLOWANCE ACT, 1974. 
[Passed by the West Bengal Legislature.] 
[Assent of the President was first published in the Calcutta 
Gazette, Extraordinary, of the 18th July, 1975.] 
[18th July, 1975.] 
An Act to provide for the payment of house-rent allowance to 
workmen employed in industry in West Bengal. 
WHEREAS it is expedient to provide for the payment of house-rent 
allowance to workmen employed in industry in West Bengal; 
It is hereby enacted in the Twenty-fifth Year of the Republic of 
India, by the Legislature of West Bengal, as follows:- 
1. (I) This Act may be called the West Bengal Workmen's House- Short title, 
rent Allowance Act, 1974. 	 extent, com- 
mencement and 
(2) It extends to the whole of West Bengal. 	 application. 
(3) It 	 shall come into force on such date as the State 
Government may, by notification, appoint. 
(4) It shall apply to every industry in which fifty or more 
workmen are employed: 
Provided that the State Government may, after giving not less than 
sixty days' notice of its intention so to do, by notification, apply the 
provisions of this Act to any industry employing such number of 
workmen less than fifty as may be specified in the notification. 
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,— 	 Definitions. 
(a) "continuous service" means uninterrupted service and 
includes service which is interrupted by sickness, accident, 
leave, lay off, strike or a lock-out or cessation of work not 
due to any fault of the workmen concerned; 
(b) "controlling authority" means the authority appointed by 
the State Government under section 3; 
(c) "employer" means in relation to any industry— 
(i) belonging to, or under the control of, the State 
Government, a person or authority appointed by the 
293 
The West Bengal Workmen's House-rent Allowance Act, 1974. 
[West Ben. Act 
(Sections 3, 4.) 
Controlling 
authority. 
Payment of 
house-rent 
allowance. 
State Government, for the supervision and control of 
workmen, or where no person or authority has been so 
appointed, the head of the Department concerned, or 
(ii) belonging to, or under the control of, any local authority, 
the person appointed by such authority for the 
supervision and control of workmen, or where no 
person has been so appointed, the chief executive 
officer of the local authority, or 
CO in any other case, the person who, or the authority 
which, has the ultimate control over the affairs of the 
industry and where the said affairs are entrusted to any 
other person, whether called a manager, managing 
director or by any other name, such person; 
(d) "industry" has the same meaning as assigned to it in clause 
(j) of section 2 of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, but does 14 of 1947. 
not include a plantation as defined in clause (f) of section 2 
of the Plantations Labour Act, 1951; 	 69 of 1951. 
(e) "month" has the same meaning as assigned to it in clause Ben. Act I of 
(27) of the Bengal General Clauses Act, 1899; 	 1899. 
05 "notification" means a notification published in the Official 
. Gazette; 
(g) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this 
Act; 
(h) "wages" has the same meaning as assigned to it in clause (rr) 
of section 2 of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947; 
(i) "workman" has the same meaning as assigned to it in clause 
(s) of section 2 of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. 
3. The State Government may, by notification, appoint any officer 
not below the rank of Labour Officer, to be the controlling authority 
who shall be responsible for the administration of this Act and different 
controlling authorities may be appointed for different areas. 
4. (1) Every employer shall be bound to pay to every workman 
house-rent allowance which shall be three and a half per cent. of the 
wages earned by the workman for his continuous service in the 
industry during a month, or rupees ten, whichever is higher: 
Provided that a workman whose period of continuous service is 
less than fifteen days in a month shall not be entitled to such house-rent 
allowance. 
294 
The West Bengal Workmen's House-rent Allowance Act, 1974. 
LVI of 1974.] 
(Section 5.) 
(2) The house-rent allowance payable to a workman under sub-
section (1) shall be paid in such manner and within such time as may 
be prescribed. 
(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1) a 
workman who is entitled to draw under the terms of his service house-
rent allowance at a higher rate than that provided in sub-section (1) 
shall continue to draw the same at such higher rate. 
(4) Where the workman in an industry is given house 
accommodation by the employer and a deduction is made therefor 
from his wages then,— 
(a) if the amount deducted for such house accommodation 
is higher than the house-rent allowance admissible under 
sub-section (1), the deduction shall be reduced by the 
amount mentioned in that sub-section and no house-rent 
allowance shall be payable to the workman; and 
(b) if the amount deducted is less than the house-rent 
allowance admissible under sub-section (1), the said 
allowance shall be reduced by the amount deducted and the 
balance paid to the workman. 
5. (1) If the house-rent allowance payable under this Act is not 
paid by the employer within the prescribed time, the workman or any 
other person authorised by him in writing in this behalf, or in the case 
of death of the workman, his legal representatives may, without 
prejudice to any other mode of recovery, make in such form and in such 
manner as may be prescribed, an application to the controlling authority 
having jurisdiction over the area in which the industry is situated, for 
the recovery of the house-rent allowance due to him: 
Provided that such application shall be made within one year from 
the date on which the house-rent allowance became due: 
. Provided further that such application may be entertained after the 
expiry of the said period of one year if the controlling authority is 
satisfied that the workman had sufficient cause for not making the 
application in time. 
(2) The controlling authority to whom an application under 
sub-section (1) is made may, after giving the applicant and the 
employer concerned an opportunity of being heard and after making 
such further inquiry, as may be considered necessary, determine, in 
such manner as may be prescribed, the amount of house-rent allowance 
Recovery of 
house-rent 
allowance. 
295 
The West Bengal Workmen's House-rent Allowance Act, 1974. 
[West Ben. Act 
Reference of 
dispute under 
the Act. 
Inspectors. 
(Sections 6, 7.) 
due to the applicant and may, by an order, direct, without prejudice to 
any other action which may under this Act or any other law lie against 
the employer, the payment to the applicant of the amount of house-rent 
allowance so determined. 
(3) Any amount directed to be paid by an order under sub-
section (2) may be recovered by any Magistrate to whom the controlling 
authority making the order makes application in this behalf as if it were 
a fine imposed by such Magistrate. 
(4) An appeal shall lie in the prescribed manner and within the 
prescribed time from an order of the controlling authority dismissing 
any application or giving any direction under sub-section (2), to the 
State Government or to such authority not below the rank of Assistant 
Labour Commissioner, as the State Government may, by notification, 
appoint in this behalf. 
6. Where any dispute arises between an employer and any 
workman with respect to the house-rent allowance payable under this 
Act or with respect to the application of this Act to an industry, such 
dispute shall be deemed to be an industrial dispute within the meaning 
of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. 
7. (1) The State Government may, by notification, appoint such 
person as it thinks fit to be Inspectors for the purposes of this Act and 
may define the limits within which they shall exercise jurisdiction. 
(2) An Inspector appointed under sub-section (1) may, for the 
purpose of ascertaining whether any of the provisions of this Act has 
been complied with,— 
(a) require an employer to furnish such information as he may 
consider necessary; 
(b) at any reasonable time and with such assistance, if any, as 
he thinks fit, enter the place of any industry or any premises 
connected therewith and require any one found in charge 
thereof to produce before him for examination any accounts, 
books, registers and other documents relating to the 
employment of workmen or the payment of wages in the 
industry; 
(c) examine, with respect to any matter relevant to any of the 
purposes aforesaid, the employer, his agent or servant or 
any other person found in charge of the industry or any 
premises connected therewith or any person whom the 
14 of 1947. 
296 
The West Bengal Workmen's House-rent Allowance Act, 1974. 
• 
LVI of 1974.] 
(Sections 8-13.) 
Inspector has reasonable cause to believe to be or to have 
been a workman in the industry; 
make copies of, or take extracts from, any book, register or 
other document maintained in relation to the industry; 
(e) exercise such other powers as may be prescribed. 
(3) Any person required to produce any accounts, book, register 
or other document or to give information by an Inspector under sub-
section (1) shall be legally bound to do so. 
8. The State Government may, if it thinks fit so to do in the public 
interest, by notification, exempt any class of industry from the 
provisions of this Act for such period and subject to such conditions, 
if any, as may be specified in the notification. 
9. Every employer shall prepare and maintain such registers, Maintenance of 
records, and other documents in such form and in such manner as may registers, 
records, etc. 
be prescribed. 
10. (1) Whoever, for the purposes of avoiding any payment to be Penalties. 
made by himself under this Act or of enabling any other person to avoid 
such payment, knowingly makes or causes to be made any false 
statement or false representation shall be punishable with imprisonment 
for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may 
extend to one thousand rupees, or with both. 
(2) Any 	 person who contravenes, or makes default in 
complying with, any of the provisions of this Act shall be punishable 
with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year, or 
with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees, or with both. 
11. (1) No court shall take cognizance of any offence punishable cognizan Cognizance or 
under this Act, save on a complaint made by or under the authority ofoffences.  
the State Government. 
(2) No court inferior to that of a Metropolitan Magistrate or a 
Judicial Magistrate of the first class shall try any offence punishable 
under this Act. 
(d) 
Power to 
exempt. 
12. No suit or other legal proceeding shall lie against the controlling 
authority, an Inspector or any otherperson in respect of anything which 
is in good faith done or intended to be done under this Act or any rule 
made thereunder. 
13. (1) The State Government may make rules for carrying out the 
purposes of this Act. 
Protection of 
action taken in 
good faith. 
Power to make 
rules. 
297 
The West Bengal Workmen's House-rent Allowance Act, 1974. 
[West Ben. Act LVI of 1974.] 
(Section 13.) 
(2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the 
foregoing power, such rules may provide for all or any of the following 
matters, namely:— 
(a) manner and time of payment of house-rent allowance 
referred to in sub-section (2) of section 4; 	 • 
(b) form and manner of making application for, and manner of 
determining the amount of, house-rent allowance due, 
referred to in sub-sections (1) and (2) of section 5; 
(c) manner in which and the time within which an appeal shall 
be filed under sub-section (4) of section 5; 
(d) other powers of Inspectors referred to in clause (e) of sub-
section (2) of section 7; and 
(e) form in which registers, records and other documents are to 
be prepared and manner in which they are to be maintained 
under section 9. 
298 

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