Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd. vs Commissioner General of Labour and Others – sllr 2009 volume 2 page 279

In Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd. (Petitioner) v. Commissioner General of Labour and Others (Respondents), the court considered whether a canvasser, remunerated through commissions instead of a fixed wage or salary, falls within the protective ambit of the Payment of Gratuity Act No. 12 of 1983. The holding established that eligibility for gratuity under the Act requires remuneration by fixed wage or salary; pure commission-based remuneration does not satisfy this statutory requirement. The decision clarified that voluntary, prior payments by the employer do not give rise to a continuing legal obligation for further gratuity payments under the Act. Relying on statutory interpretation of gratuity provisions and the factual matrix regarding employment terms, the outcome quashed the Com