Hyderabad: Telangana allows showrooms to operate 10 hours a day, according to a government order (GO) issued in 2025. This concession was given by the government because longer operating hours are crucial for the profitability of commercial establishments. However, no concession was offered to showroom workers, who are not allowed to sit for five minutes, though a similar provision is available in Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
Kerala and Tamil Nadu amended their labour laws to give retail employees the legal “Right to sit” during work hours after years of complaints from sales workers about chronic pain, swelling, exhaustion and punitive showroom rules.
Doctors, labour representatives and legal advocates said the realities of seating arrangements in these commercial spaces continue to affect showroom workers across Hyderabad, particularly female employees working in textile and retail sectors.
“The right to ventilation and a clean, healthy environment has always been part of employees’ rights under the Indian Industrial Employment Standing Orders Act, 1946, and the rules framed under it,” said Vijay Gopal, Telangana High Court lawyer. “These are elements of being human. The fact that specific provisions are now being sought by employee associations themselves shows how inhuman employers’ approach towards workers has become in some places.”
The demand for seating rights in retail jobs first gained momentum in Kerala through campaigns led by women sales workers, after repeated complaints about physical pain, restricted toilet access and harsh showroom discipline.
Kerala amended its Shops and Commercial Establishments Act in 2018 through Section 21B, mandating seating arrangements so workers are not kept “on their toes” through the day. Tamil Nadu followed in 2021 with Section 22A, which made seating compulsory in shops and commercial establishments. Telangana still operates under the Shops and Establishments Act, 1988, which covers working hours, holidays and overtime wages but has no provision for seating rights.
Kampalli Uday Kanth, advocate and vice-chairman of the Legal, Human Rights and RTI department of the TPCC, also noted the same and said, “Article 21 guarantees the right to live with dignity, while Article 42 speaks of just and humane working conditions. Yet showroom workers, especially women in textile and jewellery stores, are still forced to stand for eight to 12 hours a day.”
According to city doctors, the medical consequences of prolonged standing are common among retail and showroom employees. “People who stand continuously for long working hours commonly develop lower back pain, neck pain, knee pain and heel pain,” said orthopaedic surgeon Dr Gudluru Manoj Kumar. “For every 45 minutes of standing, workers should ideally get at least a five-minute break to sit or change posture. The body should not remain in one position continuously for long hours.”
Doctors said the problem compounds in indoor retail environments where employees have little physical mobility during work hours and spend years standing on hard flooring.
That is not all. Varicose veins, kidney issues, and blood pressure concerns are also among the many health issues that can afflict such employees. “Blood naturally pools towards the legs when a person remains standing for long durations. The heart then has to work harder to maintain circulation to the rest of the body,” said Dr Kiran Madala, state secretary of the Indian Medical Association. “So varicose veins, proteinuria, dehydration, fatigue and blood pressure fluctuations can be very common for such patients.”
Why, then, does standing continue to remain embedded in showroom work even in establishments where seating exists? Standing in retail spaces form a larger culture of visible discipline in which posture itself becomes tied to ideas of attentiveness, obedience, service and often proof of work. “In many places, seating arrangements may technically exist, but workers are discouraged from sitting, especially in customer-facing roles,” said R.D. Chandrashekhar, general secretary of the Indian National Trade Union Congresss (INTUC), Telangana. “These issues usually get addressed only when employees or unions raise them with the management.”
Workers in Hyderabad commercial areas such as Ameerpet, Kukatpally and the Old City said chairs and stools are kept away, or CCTV cameras are installed to monitor them. “Workers rarely complain openly because they fear salary cuts, termination or blacklisting,” said Chandrashekhar.
Lawyers and unions noted that the issue has moved into the domain of occupational health and labour regulation and there is an explicit need for seating protections for retail employees. “The Telangana Shops and Establishments Act contains provisions on working hours and rest intervals, but it remains silent on seating arrangements or postural rights,” Uday Kanth said.
He said Telangana should consider a statutory ‘right to sit’ provision, adding that any amendment would need to go beyond symbolic recognition and include mandatory seating arrangements, restrictions on arbitrary denial of sitting opportunities, inspections and penalties for violations. “Enshrining the right to sit is a requirement of humane working conditions and constitutional values,” he concluded.
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