Who fixes the rate and how it is structured
For most private establishments the state government is the appropriate government and fixes rates for scheduled employments such as shops, security services, hospitals and construction. Central-sphere employments (for example, some mines, railways and central PSUs) follow central notifications. The Code on Wages, in force from 21 November 2025, also introduces a national floor wage below which no state may fix its minimum.
Rates are published by skill category: unskilled, semi-skilled, skilled and highly skilled, and often by zone (metropolitan, urban, rural). Security guards are typically semi-skilled if unarmed and skilled if armed or supervisory. The notified figure is usually basic plus VDA, and both must be paid; the minimum cannot be satisfied by adding HRA or conveyance.
Converting a monthly rate to daily and hourly
The monthly minimum wage divided by 26 gives the per-day rate, on the basis that a month of 30 days less 4 weekly offs is 26 paid days. The hourly rate for overtime is the daily rate divided by 8, and overtime is paid at twice that hourly rate under the Factories Act and the Code on Wages. Weekly-off days are paid days at the monthly rate; they are not deducted.
If a daily-rated worker works all 26 days, they receive the full monthly rate. If they work 24 days, they receive 24 ÷ 26 of it, with LOP for the two days.
- Per-day wage = monthly minimum ÷ 26
- Hourly rate = per-day wage ÷ 8
- Overtime = hourly rate × 2 × overtime hours
- Check the skill category, zone and effective date on the latest state notification
Keeping the wage master compliant
Build the notified basic and VDA into the wage master by category and zone, with an effective date, and re-check every April and October (or whenever your state revises). Pay arrears from the effective date if a notification arrives after payroll has run. For contractors, the principal employer is liable if the contractor pays below minimum, so clients audit wage registers.
Do not quote a single national minimum wage figure to staff; rates differ by state, category and zone and change twice a year in many states.
Suppose a state notifies ₹15,600 per month for semi-skilled workers in Zone A (illustrative; use the current notification). The daily rate is ₹15,600 ÷ 26 = ₹600 and the hourly rate is ₹600 ÷ 8 = ₹75. A guard who worked 26 days plus 20 hours of overtime is owed ₹15,600 + (20 × ₹75 × 2) = ₹18,600 gross. EPF and ESI are then computed on the respective bases.
Attend Mitra lets you define wage rates per employee or category with basic and DA as separate components, derives paid days and overtime hours from attendance, and computes the per-day and overtime amounts in the payroll run so that a VDA revision only requires updating the master.