New Delhi, April 17 -- The Centre is exploring plans to sharply raise the national daily minimum wage to Rs.350-450, at a time workers' protests have prompted wage hikes in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.

The Union labour ministry is working on fixing minimum wages for all workers in skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled categories, two people aware of the development said. Once a national floor is set, states will be compelled to revise their minimum wages accordingly, as wages cannot be set below the national floor. The monthly payout will be 26 times the final daily wage.

Under the Code on Wages, 2019, the floor wage is a single baseline fixed by the Centre, and applies to all categories such as skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled.

"The go...