Law, Governance, and Public Policy for Hospitality industry workers

The Indian hospitality industry, a vital contributor to the nation’s economy, employs over 8 million workers as of 2023, yet many earn below the minimum wage, highlighting the urgent need for robust legal protections. Since the 1991 economic liberalization, the sector has witnessed significant growth, relying heavily on a labour-intensive workforce that includes servers, housekeepers, cooks, and porters. Despite its economic significance—accounting for approximately 10% of India’s workforce in 2018—hospitality workers face persistent challenges such as low wages, long working hours, job insecurity, and limited social protections, particularly in the informal sector. This study examines how legal frameworks, governance structures, and public policies can address these labour challenges in India’s hospitality industry, proposing a Fair and Decent Work Agenda (FDWA) to enhance worker protections. The research objectives include identifying key laws, evaluating governance effectiveness, and recommending policy reforms to foster equitable labour practices and sustainable industry growth. The legal landscape governing the hospitality sector comprises a complex network of central, state, and local laws. The Factories Act, 1948, regulates working conditions in hotel kitchens and laundries, mandating safety measures and a maximum of 48 hours weekly. The Minimum Wages Act, 1948, sets state-specific wage rates, though non-compliance is rampant in smaller establishments. The Payment of Wages Act, 1936, ensures timely payments, while the Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948, and the Employees’ Provident Fund Act, 1952, provide social security benefits, often evaded by small hotels. Gender-specific protections under the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, offer 26 weeks of paid leave, yet enforcement remains weak. The Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970, addresses conditions for contract workers, a common practice in hotels, but lacks consistent oversight. Safety and health regulations, such as the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, and Fire Safety Regulations, protect workers and customers, while operational laws like the Shops and Establishments Act and Consumer Protection Act, 2019, ensure workplace compliance. These laws, though comprehensive, suffer from enforcement gaps, exacerbated by the informal nature of much of the workforce. Governance structures play a crucial role in bridging legal intent and practical outcomes. The Ministry of Tourism, Hospitality Development and Promotion Board (HDPB), and state labour departments oversee compliance, yet understaffed labour inspection systems struggle to monitor the decentralized industry. Industry associations like the Federation of Hotels and Restaurants Association of India (FHRAI) and Hotel Association of India advocate for worker welfare, but low unionization rates and barriers to collective bargaining limit their impact. Corporate governance in large chains, such as the Taj Group, demonstrates ethical practices like training programs, yet issues like high work pressure and contract labour reliance persist. The post-COVID recovery, marked by temporary relief measures like subsidies, underscores the need for long-term governance reforms to address layoffs and increased workloads, as seen in the Orchid Hotel staff strike context. Public policy offers opportunities to address these challenges, particularly for the informal workforce, which lacks social security, and migrant labourers in urban centres like Mumbai and Delhi. Wage disparities across states, influenced by the Minimum Wages Act, highlight the need for standardized living wages. The study evaluates post-COVID policy responses and proposes the FDWA, which includes living wages, job security, career development, worker representation, and compliance monitoring. The rise of gig work and technological advancements necessitates adaptive policies to ensure fair compensation and benefits. Case studies—such as the Taj Group in Mumbai, informal workers in Rajasthan’s heritage tourism, and female housekeepers in Delhi—illustrate these dynamics, revealing best practices, enforcement gaps, and gender-specific issues like harassment under the POSH Act, 2013. The methodology employs a qualitative research design, focusing on Mumbai and Navi Mumbai due to their significance as tourism and business hubs. A mixed-methods approach includes a PRISMA-guided literature review of 50–70 sources from 2015–2025, case study analysis, and policy evaluation using Ministry of Labour data. Primary data from 18 hotel staff interviews, conducted via questionnaires and 12-minute face-to-face discussions, inform the study, analysed using SPSS and thematic analysis per Braun and Clarke (2006). The Orchid Hotel staff strike post-COVID serves as a case summary, reflecting global trends of labour unrest due to layoffs and workload increases. Findings reveal enforcement inefficiencies, governance weaknesses, and policy adaptability needs, with a SWOT analysis highlighting opportunities for technology-driven compliance tools. This research contributes to academia and industry by proposing the FDWA, advocating for a task force to oversee labour conditions, and emphasizing corporate social responsibility. It calls for harmonized standards and gender-sensitive policies to protect the diverse hospitality workforce. Limitations include restricted primary data access and regional focus, suggesting future studies explore national scalability and long-term policy impacts. As of July 02, 2025, this study provides a timely foundation for reimagining labour practices in India’s hospitality sector, aligning economic growth with social justice.