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Minimum wages in Maharashtra are fixed under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 and notified by the Labour Commissioner, Maharashtra. The state has a complex wage structure with three zones, over sixty scheduled employments, and a bi-annual VDA cycle. Maharashtra also mandates a statutory House Rent Allowance over and above the notified wage.
The short answer For the wage period 01 January 2026 to 30 June 2026, minimum wages for shops and commercial establishments in Maharashtra run from ₹12,728 a month for unskilled work in Zone III to ₹15,532 a month for skilled work in Zone I. Every rate carries a flat Variable Dearness Allowance of ₹3,900 a month across all zones and grades. The governing notification is dated 04 February 2026. Establishments employing more than 50 workers must additionally pay House Rent Allowance at 5 per cent of basic plus VDA, over and above these figures.
The monthly minimum is the notified basic for the zone and skill grade plus the current VDA of ₹3,900 – for unskilled work in Zone I that is ₹10,021 plus ₹3,900, or ₹13,921 a month. The daily rate is the monthly figure divided by 26, giving ₹535.42. Overtime is paid at twice the ordinary rate. Where the establishment employs more than 50 workers, add HRA at 5 per cent of basic plus VDA on top of the notified total.
The mistake to avoid: using one Maharashtra number across the whole state. Mumbai, Pune and rest-of-state schedules rarely align, and over sixty scheduled employments carry their own rate tables that can sit well above the general figure. A single statewide band in a vendor contract or an RFP will breach somewhere, and the breach is usually in Zone I.
Worked example – unskilled, Zone I
Basic = ₹10,021 / month · VDA = ₹3,900 / month
Total per month = 10,021 + 3,900 = ₹13,921
Per day = 13,921 ÷ 26 = ₹535.42
Per year = 13,921 × 12 = ₹1,67,052
If the establishment has 50+ workers, add HRA at 5% of 13,921 = ₹696.05
Maharashtra notifies three skill grades for the general schedule rather than the four most states use – there is no separate highly skilled band, so roles that would sit in a fourth tier elsewhere map to skilled here. Classification follows the work actually performed, and it interacts with the zone: the same grade carries a different figure in each of the three zones.
Industry schedules can exceed the general rate
Over sixty scheduled employments carry separate notifications. Skilled wages in Zone I across those industries range roughly from ₹11,049 to ₹24,689 a month, so a general-schedule figure is a floor for shops and establishments, not a ceiling for every sector.
Act on this: check whether a specific scheduled employment covers your establishment before applying the general table. Banking, hotels, sugar manufacturing, construction, hospitals, pharma, engineering and transport all carry their own notified rates, and the industry rate governs where one exists.
Minimum wages in Maharashtra apply across more than sixty scheduled employments, and coverage does not depend on headcount. The notification covers legal establishments, construction, hospitals, pharmaceutical units, engineering, hotels and transport among many others, each with its own zone-wise rate table. Under the Code on Wages, the basic component must equal at least 50 per cent of the total minimum wage. Contract workers are covered on the same footing as directly employed staff, with the principal employer liable for a contractor’s shortfall.
Paying below the notified rate exposes an employer to recovery of the shortfall for the whole affected period, compensation on top, and prosecution. Under the Code on Wages, 2019 a first offence attracts a fine of up to ₹50,000, and a repeat offence within five years can mean up to three months imprisonment and a fine of up to ₹1 lakh. Maharashtra’s Labour Department enforces actively, particularly in the Mumbai and Pune industrial belts.
Act on this: check the 50 per cent basic rule alongside the wage floor. For a Mumbai unskilled worker the basic must be at least half the total minimum wage, and Maharashtra’s professional tax slab interacts with that threshold — so an allowance-heavy structure creates a wage-floor problem and a PT problem at once.
Maharashtra revises minimum wages twice a year, with the Variable Dearness Allowance updated for the January to June and July to December periods. The current notification, dated 04 February 2026 under reference Gra.Vi./Ki.Ve.A/Vi.Bha. Jan-June/2026, applies from 01 January 2026 to 30 June 2026 and sets the VDA at a flat ₹3,900 a month across all zones and grades. The July to December 2026 revision was due from 01 July 2026 and is typically gazetted around August.
Act on this: diarise January and August, not January and July. Maharashtra’s notification consistently lands weeks after the effective date – the January 2026 order was signed on 04 February – so the practical checkpoint is the month after the cycle begins, and arrears accrue from the effective date regardless.
Revision history for shops and commercial establishments in Maharashtra. Only the VDA moves at the half-yearly revision.
| Applicable Period | Notified On | VDA / Month | Unskilled Zone I / Month | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 Jan 2026 – 30 Jun 2026 | 04 Feb 2026 | ₹3,900 | ₹13,921 | Notification Gra.Vi./Ki.Ve.A/Vi.Bha. Jan-June/2026 |
| 01 Jul 2026 – 31 Dec 2026 | – | – | – | Due from 01 Jul 2026; typically gazetted around August |
| 01 Jul 2025 – 31 Dec 2025 | – | – | – | Preceding half-year |
The January 2026 period expired on 30 June 2026. Confirm whether the July to December 2026 notification has since been gazetted, and provide for arrears from 01 July if it lands retrospectively. Cross-verified against compliance-maintained datasets, July 2026. Always confirm against the official notification of the relevant State Labour Department before finalizing payroll.
Maharashtra sits in the upper-middle of the national range and is structurally the most complex schedule in India – three zones, sixty-plus scheduled employments with their own tables, and a statutory HRA that no neighbouring state matches. The HRA obligation for establishments above 50 workers is the part most often missed by employers arriving from other states.
Unskilled minimum wage per day, compared with other states. Comparison figures are to be filled from each state’s own notification.
| State / Benchmark | Unskilled / Day | Structure |
|---|---|---|
| Maharashtra – Zone I | ₹535.42 | Basic ₹10,021 + VDA ₹3,900 a month, plus 5% HRA at 50+ workers |
| Maharashtra – Zone III | ₹489.54 | Basic ₹8,828 + VDA ₹3,900 a month, rest of state |
| Karnataka – Zone I | ₹620.66 | Basic ₹11,587.83 + VDA ₹4,549.20 a month |
| Gujarat – Zone I | ₹512.50 | Basic ₹452.00 + VDA ₹60.50 a day |
| Goa – Zone A | ₹561.00 | Basic ₹412.00 + VDA ₹149.00 a day |
| National Floor Wage | – | Advisory floor, not directly enforceable on employers |
Act on this: if you operate across Maharashtra, Gujarat and Karnataka, hold three separate rate masters and a Maharashtra-specific HRA rule. Maharashtra is the only one of the three with a statutory HRA on top of the wage floor, and it applies from 51 workers upward.
The table below sets out minimum wages of Maharashtra for shops and commercial establishments, effective 01 January 2026 to 30 June 2026. The VDA of ₹3,900 a month is flat across every zone and grade. Daily figures are the monthly total divided by 26. Establishments with more than 50 workers pay an additional 5 per cent HRA on basic plus VDA.
| Zone | Grade | Basic / Month | VDA / Month | Total / Month | Total / Day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zone I – Municipal Corporations, industrial areas | Unskilled | ₹10,021 | ₹3,900 | ₹13,921 | ₹535.42 |
| Semi-skilled | ₹10,856 | ₹3,900 | ₹14,756 | ₹567.54 | |
| Skilled | ₹11,632 | ₹3,900 | ₹15,532 | ₹597.38 | |
| Zone II – Municipal Councils | Unskilled | ₹9,425 | ₹3,900 | ₹13,325 | ₹512.50 |
| Semi-skilled | ₹10,260 | ₹3,900 | ₹14,160 | ₹544.62 | |
| Skilled | ₹11,036 | ₹3,900 | ₹14,936 | ₹574.46 | |
| Zone III – all other areas | Unskilled | ₹8,828 | ₹3,900 | ₹12,728 | ₹489.54 |
| Semi-skilled | ₹9,664 | ₹3,900 | ₹13,564 | ₹521.69 | |
| Skilled | ₹10,440 | ₹3,900 | ₹14,340 | ₹551.54 |
Source: Office of the Labour Commissioner, Maharashtra – notification dated 04 February 2026, applicable 01 January 2026 to 30 June 2026, for shops and commercial establishments. Over sixty scheduled employments carry separate rate tables. HRA of 5% on basic plus VDA is payable additionally by establishments employing more than 50 workers. Cross-verified against compliance-maintained datasets, July 2026. Always confirm against the official notification of the relevant State Labour Department before finalizing payroll.
Maharashtra classifies its territory into three zones by urbanisation, infrastructure and cost of living. The gap between Zone I and Zone III is ₹1,193 a month at the unskilled level, about 9.4 per cent.
The 20-kilometre rule catches people out
An industrial estate outside corporation limits can still be Zone I if it sits within 20 kilometres of one. Do not infer the zone from the municipal boundary alone for industrial locations.
Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur, Thane, Nashik and Aurangabad all fall in Zone I, so an unskilled worker in any of them earns ₹13,921 a month or ₹535.42 a day under the general schedule, and a skilled worker ₹15,532. A municipal council town applies Zone II and a rural site Zone III. Two cautions for Mumbai and Pune employers: many scheduled employments carry industry-specific rates above the general figure, and any establishment with more than 50 workers owes an additional 5 per cent HRA on basic plus VDA on top of whichever figure applies.
For 01 January 2026 to 30 June 2026, minimum wages of Maharashtra for shops and commercial establishments run from ₹12,728 a month for unskilled work in Zone III to ₹15,532 a month for skilled work in Zone I. Unskilled Zone I is ₹13,921 a month or ₹535.42 a day. Every figure includes a flat VDA of ₹3,900 a month.
Twice a year. The Variable Dearness Allowance is revised for the January to June and July to December periods, linked to the All-India Consumer Price Index. Notifications typically land weeks after the effective date — the January 2026 order was dated 04 February 2026 — so arrears accrue if payroll waits for publication.
Zone I covers Municipal Corporation and cantonment areas plus industrial areas within 20 kilometres of a corporation. Mumbai and the MMR, Pune, Nagpur, Thane, Nashik and Aurangabad sit here. Zone II is Municipal Council areas and Zone III is everywhere else.
Yes, and this is unusual. Establishments employing more than 50 workers must pay House Rent Allowance at 5 per cent of basic plus VDA, over and above the notified minimum wage. For an unskilled Zone I worker at ₹13,921 a month, that is an additional ₹696.05.
No. More than sixty scheduled employments carry their own notified rates — banking, hotels, sugar manufacturing, construction, hospitals, pharma, engineering and transport among them. Skilled wages in Zone I across those industries range roughly from ₹11,049 to ₹24,689 a month. The general schedule applies to shops and commercial establishments.
Divide the notified monthly total by 26. Unskilled Zone I at ₹13,921 a month gives ₹535.42 a day. Overtime is twice the ordinary rate. Under the Code on Wages the basic component must be at least 50 per cent of the total minimum wage, which also affects the professional tax position.
Alpesh Vaghasiya (CEO)
Alpesh Vaghasiya is the Co-founder and CEO of Superworks, a smart business management solution that Indian SMBs and large enterprises use to run attendance, payroll, and statutory compliance from a single system. He has spent over 15 years building software out of Surat, founding Artoon Solutions, now a 350+ person product engineering firm serving clients across 30+ countries, in 2009, before launching Superworks in 2020.
His writing comes from the operator's side of compliance - what actually breaks when payroll has to absorb a minimum wage revision, reconcile attendance across multiple sites, or file returns under different state rules in the same month. A Charter Member of TiE Surat and an active angel investor in early-stage Indian startups, he holds a B.E. in Computer Engineering from Gujarat University.
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