Minimum wages in Jharkhand: current rates (from 1 October 2026)

Minimum wage rates in Jharkhand (from 1 October 2026)

Labour Commissioner's office, Jharkhand, notification No. 02/MW-2071/2010(Part-3) L&T-1604 dated 15 October 2026 (Hindi version No. 1603), under section 6 of the Code on Wages, 2019. It revises the VDA from 1 October 2026 on the January to June 2026 average CPI (431, against the base of 386 for the basic rates in force from 11 March 2024), and applies to all employments until further orders. It prints both daily and monthly rates; day and month convert at 26 days, and the rates include the weekly rest day.

Both tables are as printed in the notification. The VDA is part of the minimum wage, so pay the total, not the basic alone.

Zones and who is covered

Zone A: Ranchi, Chas, Dhanbad, Deoghar, Hazaribagh, Mango and Adityapur Municipal Corporations, the Jamshedpur Notified Area and Jugsalai Municipal Council. Zone B: all other municipal and notified areas. Zone C: the rest of the State.

Minimum wages apply to every employee, whether paid monthly, daily or by the hour, permanent, temporary or through a contractor. Under the Code on Wages, 2019 the employer must pay at least the notified rate for the category and area. If you use a contractor, check that contract workers are paid at least the same rates.

Worked example

A Jamshedpur (Zone A) engineering supplier employs an unskilled helper and a skilled machinist, paid monthly.

• Helper: at least ₹13,586 a month from 1 October 2026. ESI: employee ₹102 and employer ₹442 (rounded up). PF at 12%: ₹1,630 from each side.
• Machinist: at least ₹18,782 a month.
• A daily-rated helper working 20 days in Zone C earns at least ₹475 × 20 = ₹9,500.

If the CPI falls, the notification says rates are not reduced, so October 2026 rates are the floor until the next order.

Compliance checklist for employers

1. Classify every employee in the notification's categories (unskilled, semi-skilled, skilled, highly skilled or the staff grades) based on the actual work, not the job title alone.
2. Compare gross wages for normal hours with the rate for the employee's zone, before PF, ESI and other deductions.
3. Revise payroll from the first day of each new rate or VDA period and pay arrears for any period already paid at the old rate.
4. Pay overtime at twice the ordinary rate for work beyond normal hours, as the Code on Wages requires.
5. Keep wage registers and payslips that show the rate, days worked and deductions.

Minimum wage revisions move PF and ESI too: PF is 12% of wages up to ₹25,000, and ESI applies while gross wages are within ₹21,000 a month.

Keep payroll in step with each revision

Check take-home pay with the salary calculator, the employer and employee shares with the PF calculator and ESI calculator, and show every deduction clearly using the salary slip format. Work out pay for part months with the per-day salary calculator and extra hours with the overtime calculator. FundRaksha HR turns attendance and leave into paid days, calculates salary with PF, ESI, professional tax and TDS, and issues payslip PDFs, so a VDA revision is a rate change in one place rather than in every row of a spreadsheet. If you are choosing a tool, see our comparison of the best payroll software in India, and compare every State on the minimum wages by state page.

Sources

• shramadhan.jharkhand.gov.in/ftp/WebAdmin/documents/VDA_Notification_01-10-2026.pdf