Minimum Wages Act coverage excludes teachers, as educational work is outside the statutory class of employments.

Teachers are not covered by the Minimum Wages Act because they do not perform skilled, unskilled, manual or clerical work within the meaning of Section 2(i). The Act's protective purpose cannot be used to expand its scope beyond employments expressly contemplated by the legislature, and the power to add employments to the Schedule under Section 27 applies only to occupations already of that kind. As a result, educational institutions' teachers cannot be brought within scheduled employment for fixation of minimum wages, and the State lacks competence to fix minimum wages for them under the Act.

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Issues: Whether teachers of an educational institution fall within the definition of employee under Section 2(i) of the Minimum Wages Act and can therefore be included in scheduled employment for fixation of minimum wages under Sections 5(2) and 27 of the Act.

Analysis: The object of the Minimum Wages Act is to prevent exploitation by fixing minimum wages in employments intended to be covered by the statute. The definition of employee in Section 2(i) extends only to persons employed for hire or reward to do work that is skilled or unskilled, manual or clerical. Section 27 permits addition of an employment to the Schedule, but only where the employment is of the kind contemplated by the Act. Teachers primarily impart education, which is not skilled, unskilled, manual or clerical work. The beneficial character of the statute cannot be used to enlarge its coverage beyond the class of employments expressly contemplated by the legislature.

Conclusion: Teachers of educational institutions do not fall within Section 2(i) of the Minimum Wages Act and cannot be brought within the Act by notification under Section 27. The State Government had no competence to fix minimum wages for them under the Act.

Ratio Decidendi: The Minimum Wages Act applies only to employments involving skilled, unskilled, manual or clerical work, and its scheduling power cannot be used to include occupations outside that statutory class.

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