Bringing Equitable Workplace Adjustments to Our India Teams

Bringing Equitable Workplace Adjustments to Our India Teams

As an HR Manager with more than a decade of experience working for a global UK-based company, I’ve always taken pride in our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Our offices in London and New York have well-established protocols for making reasonable workplace adjustments. Whether it's ergonomic seating, assistive technology, or modified duties for those recovering from injury, our employees in these cities receive the support they need to work comfortably and productively.

However, when we expanded operations into India, particularly across offices in Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Pune, I quickly realised that achieving parity in workplace adjustments was far more complex than I initially expected. Despite our good intentions, we weren’t delivering adjustments to the same standard for our Indian employees as we were for those in our western hubs.

The Legal Landscape

From a compliance standpoint, our obligations were clear. As a UK employer with global operations, we have a duty to uphold our standards in every location. The UK Equality Act 2010 obliges us to make reasonable adjustments for employees with disabilities or health conditions—and these values don’t stop at our borders.

In India, the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, and guidelines under the Factories Act, also mandate non-discrimination and reasonable workplace modifications. But laws are only one side of the equation. The real challenge lies in execution—ensuring that staff in India are not unintentionally left behind due to logistical gaps or a lack of local specialist providers.

The Problem: One-Size-Fits-All Solutions

When we first began addressing ergonomic complaints in our India offices, we found ourselves working with local furniture manufacturers who had solid reputations for general office furniture. Many had established factories in India to avoid import duties, making procurement quicker and more cost-effective.

These manufacturers produced well-engineered chairs—but they were built for mass office populations, not individuals with musculoskeletal conditions, recovery needs, or vastly different body types. In our London office, we wouldn’t think twice about sourcing a specialist vertical mouse for someone with carpal tunnel syndrome, or providing an adjustable chair for an employee recovering from hip surgery. Yet, in India, we were too often defaulting to general-purpose solutions that simply weren’t good enough.

We also faced a practical challenge: in India, it's not uncommon for desks or chairs to be shared by shift workers. This created further complexity when, for example, a petite employee on the morning shift needed a very different chair from a much taller colleague using the same station in the afternoon. The lack of adjustable or specialist equipment was affecting productivity—and, more importantly, staff wellbeing.

The Breakthrough: Finding the Right Partner

Everything changed when we discovered workplaceadjustments.in. They didn’t just offer ergonomic products—they brought expertise. Their team understood the principles of occupational health, reasonable adjustment law, and human factors design. They weren’t trying to push a catalogue of generic furniture; they were solving real problems with insight and empathy.

From the first consultation, they asked the right questions: Where is the pain? What does the job require? Is the equipment shared? What’s the history of the condition?

They offered a full range of solutions—from RH and HÅG seating, to specialist document holders, vertical mice, footrests, and monitor arms. More importantly, they were able to explain which products worked best for specific conditions, and they shipped and supported them locally.

We could finally offer our Indian employees the same level of personalised support that we had long taken for granted in the UK. One of our software engineers in Pune, who had been struggling with chronic lower back pain, received a custom-adjustable chair and ergonomic mouse. Within two weeks, their discomfort had significantly reduced, and their productivity improved noticeably.

A Step Toward Global Consistency

Equity doesn’t mean giving everyone the same thing—it means giving people what they need to succeed. We learned that treating India as an "outpost" rather than a fully integrated part of our global workforce was not only a compliance risk but a moral blind spot.

Thanks to workplaceadjustments.in, we’ve been able to correct that. They’ve helped us achieve what every HR professional aims for: a consistent, fair, and inclusive workplace experience, no matter where our employees are located.