ISSUE:
Whether the workers were paid a ‘living wage’ which would disqualify them from claiming a bonus?
RULE:
Constructing a wage structure involves ethical and social considerations, addressing workers’ needs in a progressive society.
The impact of award of bonus in an industrial dispute on other establishments in the region must be given due importance while fixing the amount.
The distribution of available surplus in the form of bonus depends on the facts and circumstances of each case.
The concept of living wage is not a static concept – it expands with the growth of the national economy.