Question 1

Why is there only one notification for all 81 employments?

Accepted Answer

Because the earlier approach was struck down. Karnataka had revised wages for 34 scheduled employments in 2022-23, raising rates by five to ten per cent through separate notifications. The All India Trade Union Congress challenged those notifications before the High Court, which quashed them in orders of September and October 2023 and directed that fresh notifications be issued following the procedure the Supreme Court laid down in the Reckitt Benckiser case.
A division bench set aside the single judge's order on 13 December 2024 and remitted the matter. The state then issued a draft single notification on 11 April 2025, took objections, put them to the Minimum Wages Advisory Board on 29 July and 28 August 2025, and issued this final notification.

Question 2

Which zone is my workplace in?

Accepted Answer

Zone 1 is the area falling under the Greater Bengaluru Authority. Zone 2 is every other Mahanagara Palike area together with all district headquarters. Zone 3 is everything else in the state.
Because the ladder moves one full grade per zone, the zone matters as much as the skill grade. A skilled worker in Zone 3 is on the same ₹23,376.43 as an unskilled worker in Zone 1.

Question 3

How does dearness allowance work here?

Accepted Answer

It is annual, not half-yearly. Dearness allowance is calculated each year on the average of the twelve monthly consumer price index numbers for the preceding calendar year, and is payable from 1 April.
Above an index of 9,469 points, every point of increase attracts ₹4 per day for workers of all grades. For monthly-paid staff the monthly DA is the index points multiplied by the rate and by 30 days; for daily-rated workers the same figure is divided by 26.

Question 4

Do I divide the monthly wage by 26 days or 30?

Accepted Answer

By 26 for converting a monthly rate to a day's pay. The notification is explicit that where a daily-rated worker's wages have to be worked out from the monthly rate, the monthly rate is divided by 26, and any fraction is rounded up to the nearest rupee.
The 30-day figure appears only inside the dearness allowance formula, which is a different calculation. Using 30 to work out a day's wage understates it, and that error runs against the employee.

Question 5

How are the four skill grades defined?

Accepted Answer

The notification defines them. Unskilled work is done on the basis of physical labour and needs no personal judgment or prior experience. Semi-skilled work is repetitive work of a defined routine done under supervision, with limited scope for personal judgment. Skilled work requires independent judgment, decision-making and discretion, with deep knowledge of the trade. Highly skilled work requires competence and superior capability to supervise all other categories and deliver results.
Schedule 5 of the notification also lists hundreds of specific job titles against each grade, which is the practical way to classify a role rather than arguing from the definitions.

Question 6

Is this under the Minimum Wages Act or the Code on Wages?

Accepted Answer

Under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948. The notification is issued in exercise of powers under Sections 3(1)(b) and 5(1)(b) of that Act.
The notification addresses the Code on Wages, 2019 directly, recording that the Central Government brought it into force on 21 November 2025 and that Section 69 repeals the Minimum Wages Act. It then reproduces the savings provision: anything done under the repealed enactments, including any notification, is deemed to have been done under the corresponding provisions of the Code and remains in force. That is the basis on which these rates stand.

Minimum Wages in Karnataka 2026

Two things to check first

81 Scheduled Employments: Wage Rates by Zone and Skill Grade

Download official notification

Frequently Asked Questions

Every state revises wages on its own calendar. Payroll has to keep up with all of them.

Zone	Category of worker	Per day	★ Per month
Zone 1	Highly skilled	1,196.69	31,114.02
Zone 1	Skilled	1,087.90	28,285.47
Zone 1	Semi-skilled	989.00	25,714.07
Zone 1	Unskilled	899.09	23,376.43
Zone 2	Highly skilled	1,087.90	28,285.47
Zone 2	Skilled	989.00	25,714.07
Zone 2	Semi-skilled	899.09	23,376.43
Zone 2	Unskilled	817.35	21,251.30
Zone 3	Highly skilled	989.00	25,714.07
Zone 3	Skilled	899.09	23,376.43
Zone 3	Semi-skilled	817.35	21,251.30
Zone 3	Unskilled	743.05	19,319.36