Background
Under Section 3(1)(a) and (b) read with Section 5 of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 (Central Act No. 11 of 1948), read with the Telangana Minimum Wages Rules, 1949, the Government of Telangana is empowered to fix and periodically revise minimum rates of wages for scheduled employments in the State. The Labour, Employment, Training & Factories Department, Government of Telangana, revises these rates periodically, generally linked to movement in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) through the Variable Dearness Allowance (VDA) component, and has published the wage schedule applicable for the period April 1, 2026 to September 30, 2026 on its official website.
Applicability
These rates apply to all employers in the State of Telangana engaging workers in employments notified as scheduled employments under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, spanning sectors such as shops and commercial establishments, factories, building and road construction, security services, and other listed trades and occupations. Within each scheduled employment, the applicable rate further varies by geographic zone (Zone I and Zone II, with higher rates generally applicable to Hyderabad and other more urbanised areas) and by the worker’s skill classification — Unskilled, Semi-Skilled, Skilled, and Highly Skilled. Employers should identify the scheduled employment, zone, and skill category applicable to each worker before applying the corresponding rate.
Compliance Requirements
Given the extensive number of scheduled employments, geographic zones, and skill-wise rate combinations covered under the Year 2026-27 wage schedule, the detailed category-wise and zone-wise rates are not reproduced in this write-up. Employers should refer directly to the official notification page below, which also provides a downloadable spreadsheet of category-wise rates, before processing payroll.
Reference: https://labour.tn.gov.in/minimum-wages.php
Penalty and Consequences
Under Section 22 of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, an employer who pays an employee less than the minimum rate of wages fixed for that employee’s class of work, or who contravenes any rule or order made under Section 13 of the Act, is punishable with imprisonment for a term extending up to six months, or with fine extending up to ₹500, or with both. Under Section 22A of the Act, any employer who contravenes any other provision of the Act or of any rule or order made thereunder, for which no specific penalty is otherwise provided, is punishable with a fine extending up to ₹500.
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