Labor legislations for improving quality of work life in Nepal

Abstract

Purpose – This paper aims to review how far Nepalese firms are complying quality of work life (QWL) provisions of the Labor laws and to assess expectations of union leaders on different dimensions of QWL. Design/methodology/approach – This paper is mainly based on a literature survey. To answer the research, three different labor laws are reviewed. In order to understand expectation of union leaders, a questionnaire survey is administered. Findings – In Nepalese workplaces, the QWL situation is deteriorating and thus commitment of the part of government, employers, and union leaders is required to work on QWL initiatives and to create a sound and harmonious industrial relations environment. Research limitations/implications – There are various dimensions affecting QWL initiatives. However, in this study only labor legislation is taken as a measure to examine QWL initiatives. Similarly, to understand expectations towards different dimensions of QWL only views of union leaders are collected. No other views than those of union leaders are considered. Practical implications – The clear deviation in the implementation of labor laws and widening expectation gap of union leaders can be referred as a poor QWL situation in Nepalese firms. This paper clearly makes an open debate on different QWL issues and provides clues for researchers in making future studies of the QWL situation in Nepal. Originality/value – A paper of this kind focusing on QWL and labor legislation together with inputs from literature has never been written and published before. This is the original contribution of the authors to familiarize readers with the situation of QWL in Nepalese organizations.