Salary or Wage :

The “salary or wage” means all remuneration (other than remuneration in respect of over-time work) capable of being expressed in terms of money, which would, if the terms of employment, express or implied, were fulfilled, be payable to an employee in respect of his employment or of work done in such employment and includes dearness allowance (that is to say, all cash payments, by whatever name called, paid to an employee on account of a rise in the cost of living) but does not include:

(i) any other allowance which the employee is for the time being entitled to;

(ii) the value of any house accommodation or of supply of light, water, medical attendance or other amenity or of any service or of any concessional supply of foodgrains or other articles;

(iii) any travelling concession;

(iv) any bonus (including incentive, production and attendance bonus);

(v) any contribution paid or payable by the employer to any pension fund or provident fund or for the benefit of the employee under any law for the time being in force;

(vi) any retrenchment compensation or any gratuity or other retirement benefit payable to the employee or any ex-gratia payment made to him;

(vii) any commission payable to the employee [Section 2(21)]

The Explanation appended to the Section states that where an employee is given in lieu of the whole or part of the salary or, wage payable to him, free food allowance or free food by his employer, such food allowance or the value of such food shall, for the purpose of this clause, be deemed to form part of the salary or wage of such employee.

The definition is wide enough to cover the payment of retaining allowance and also dearness allowance paid to the workmen. It is nothing but remuneration (Chalthan Vibhag Sahakari Khand Udyog v. Government Labour Officer AIR 1981 SC 905). Subsistence allowance given during suspension is not wages. However lay-off compensation is wages.