Marketing Staff cover under Factory act or Shops & Est. Act ??

Hi Seniors,

Can anyone please guide me on whether the Company's Marketing staff will be covered under the Factory Act or the Shop & Establishment Act? We have our manufacturing unit in Haryana and the corporate office is in Delhi. Although the Salary processing is done from Haryana as we previously had our corporate office in Haryana on the same premises as the Manufacturing unit, and the company is registered under the Factory Act. All employees (Manufacturing + Sales & Marketing employees) are enrolled under EPF & ESI with the Haryana government. Subsequently, we opened a new office in Delhi where we manage all Sales & Marketing personnel (approximately 500 employees) who are spread across PAN India. However, the salary processing, EPF, ESI, LWF, etc., are submitted to the Haryana government.

Now, my questions are:

1. While recruiting employees (Sales & Marketing), which minimum wage should I follow, Haryana or Delhi?
2. While preparing the Leave policy/Working hours, should I follow the Factory Act or Delhi's Shop & Establishment Act?
3. Which act will the Labor Department consider this office under in case of any issues or disputes related to employees, the Factory Act or Delhi's Shop & Establishment Act?

Please provide me with detailed and accurate guidance. I would be highly thankful to you!

Regards,
Rajesh Kumar
HR Manager

Dear Rajeshkumar,

Since you have a separate Corporate Office in Delhi, the establishment-specific Labor Law applicable is the Delhi S&E Act only. The marketing staff attached to the Corporate Office, along with their conditions of service, would be governed by the provisions of the DS&E Act, and the minimum wage fixed for employment in DS&E would be applicable to them. However, if you have regional offices across the country, the pan-India employees reporting to such regional offices would be covered by the respective State S&E Act applicable to that regional office.

Considering the specifics related to the manufacturing facility, the corporate office, the various locations for manufacturing, administration, and marketing, as well as the probable number of employees engaged in each operation, your establishment is indeed a very large organization with a pan-India presence. Therefore, why limit the service conditions of employees of the same or similar class to different laws based on their places of work? Wouldn't this potentially cause difficulties in the case of interstate transfers necessitated by work requirements?

The statutory standards for conditions of employment are minimal. When there are variations in the standards prescribed by different laws, logically and legally, the more beneficial standard should be preferred. So, why not consider implementing all-India standards?

Please let me know if you need any further clarification.

Thank you.

Dear Rajesh Kumar,

If the names of the marketing staff are on the factory payroll, they will be covered under the Factory Act. Otherwise, they will fall under the Shop & Est. Act.

Thank you.