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Section 33: Maintenance of registers and records and filing of returns

The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 (Act No. 37 of 2020) • Official Statutory Text & Plain English Practice Guide

Statutory Mandate
Chapter VII: Maintenance of Registers, Records and Returns
Competent Labour Forum
Act No. 37 of 2020
Section 32 All 143 Sections of OSH Code, 2020 Section 34

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 33

Section 33 of the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 establishes the statutory framework for the maintenance of electronic registers, records, wage slips, and the electronic filing of unified annual returns, eliminating duplicative record-keeping across multiple labor statutes into a single digital compliance architecture.

  • Unified Electronic Registers & Records Mandate: Requires employers to maintain registers electronically (or in physical form where permitted) recording worker details, muster roll, daily hours worked, overtime, leave with wages, hazardous exposures, and accident logs in prescribed unified formats.
  • Mandatory Wage Slips & Employment Cards: Imposes an absolute duty on employers to issue digital or written wage slips prior to wage disbursement and issue formal employment cards to all workers within three days of joining, substantiating the existence of the employment relationship.
  • Single Electronic Annual Return Mechanism: Requires the employer to file a single unified annual return electronically on the Shram Suvidha portal on or before the end of February each year, consolidating reporting for safety, working hours, and workforce metrics.
Key Landmark Precedents:
  • Workmen of American Express International Banking Corp. v. Management (1985) 4 SCC 71: Supreme Court held that statutory employment registers and muster rolls maintained under labor enactments are public records of high probative value; failure by management to produce them warrants drawing an adverse inference.
  • Municipal Corporation of Delhi v. Ganesh Razak (1995) 1 SCC 235: Supreme Court ruled that statutory muster rolls and employment records form the indispensable evidential foundation for resolving wage parity, overtime, and continuous service claims in industrial adjudications.
Courtroom Practice & Strategic Litigation Guidance:

Deploy automated HRMS compliance software integrated with biometric turnstiles to ensure daily muster roll, overtime hours, and leave balances are captured digitally. Ensure wage slips are generated electronically and dispatched via SMS or portal links before the 7th of each month, retaining permanent digital logs to defend against claims of unauthorized deductions or non-payment of overtime.

Section 32 All 143 Sections of OSH Code, 2020 Section 34