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The aim of this paper is to highlight differences and similarities in human resource management (HRM) practices between first‐ and second‐generation South Asian entrepreneurs and the extent to which such practices support an integrated HRM system.

The paper draws its theoretical underpinning via five “generic HRM functions” and practices, i.e. selection, appraisals, reward, development, and strategy. To help understand the application of such practices from an ethnic dimension, 42 semi‐structured interviews were carried out with two ethnic groups. The two groups chosen were first‐ and second‐generation Sikh and Pakistani Muslim entrepreneurs from micro and small businesses situated within the Greater London area. In addition, nine businesses across both ethnic groups were selected to complete the multiple (comparative) case‐study stage of the research. Investigation was conducted within the phenomenological paradigm.

The paper notes that differences and similarities between the two generations are based more on sectoral location and type of business with minor instances of cultural and generational nuances. With regard to the development of an integrated HRM system, the evidence suggests that time, cost and expertise are considered constraining factors and, as such, respondents adopt an informal ad hoc approach. Interestingly, although this informality is common within the business, respondents are in fact leaving themselves exposed to breaches of employment law.

The paper supports the literature, whereby training and advice for EMBs that emphasise formal procedures may be counterproductive. Instead, direction should be given to ensure that HRM practices stress accountability, control and connectedness, help to reduce any perceived risk of litigation, and ensure that statutory requirements are met.

The paper offers unique insight into an unknown entity, namely HRM issues within ethnic small businesses.

The purpose of this paper is to study some of the business and legal problems experienced by the licensed trade and to explore the need for greater control for entry to the industry.

The approach taken has been to use an overview of the function of professional and trade bodies together with a detailed analysis relevant to the licensed trade.

The findings are that the dangers of anti‐social behaviour resulting from alcohol consumption, coupled with the activities of some licensees, suggest that a more professional group of licensees could benefit employees and consumers.

The research is limited by being desk‐based.

The extra demands to gain a licence could be unpopular but, if the proposals led to fewer examples of business failure, a greater proficiency in dealing with customers and a greater awareness of the dangers of alcohol, then it would be of real benefit to the public. Is a Licence to Trade the way forward?

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the need for the creation of a professional body whose membership would be essential for those wishing to hold a licence for the retailing of alcohol in the UK.

The Home Office and similar sources are employed to establish the problems of alcohol abuse. Trade information is utilised to consider the attitude of various stakeholders to this issue. Ethical texts examine expected responses from the sector. From these authoritative sources a solution has been proposed.

The results led to the proposal that the establishment of a compulsory professional body be considered.

There is a lack of empirical research to investigate the proposal. This would be necessary to progress the idea.

The proposal for a professional body whose membership would be compulsory for a licence‐holder would be the subject of a major policy debate.

This embryonic proposal is original and would be of interest to all stakeholders.

This paper aims to investigate the extent to which public house licensees conform with employment legislation.

The paper examines legislation within the hospitality industry. Five aspects of the legislation were selected and a case study approach was used with a sample of micro business licensees.

The results show that those licensees who manage outlets on behalf of the large pub‐owning companies had a far greater knowledge of the legislation than independent respondents who, in some instances, appeared to flout the legislation deliberately.

The independent sector of the licensed trade appears to lack vital information about employment legislation, and licensees might not realise the consequences of ignorance or deliberate non‐compliance. Those involved in running this type of micro business need to establish more effective sources of information on such issues.

This paper offers a clear indication to all involved in the hospitality industry that there could be problems with employers within the micro sector gaining information about employment legislation and also adhering to relevant regulations.

The aim of this paper was to outline the changes in the 20th century public house, where the simultaneous development of pub products and facilities and a changing environment have encouraged a growth of the female customer.

There has been a heavy use of secondary sources drawn from the whole of the period studied. This has been augmented by discussions with licensees, retired licensees and older pub customers, to collect their reflections on the industry.

The public house of 60 years ago had a largely male, working class beer drinking clientele. Over the years, it has become accessible to women and children, the hungry and those seeking entertainment. These changes have been effected by the owners, introducing new products and altering the premises, licensees seeking to attract trade, government legislation and external factors. This paper attempts to identify the changes and their causes, with particular reference to the female customer.

The work reports the changes in the industry and examines some of the causes. Further work could examine such causes more carefully, and could include regional studies for comparison purposes.

The paper demonstrates the extent of change, and suggests that further women‐friendly moves could be welcomed; it further suggests some strategies to develop the female customer base.

The topic could be of interest to the general reader as well as practitioners and students of the hospitality industry. It suggests that pubs can become even more women‐friendly, which could represent a business opportunity to some practitioners.

Effective knowledge management can be used to enhance efficiency and improve business performance. However, there is a sector of the business community where knowledge management will have very little impact at all. This is in the sector of very small and micro businesses employing fewer than 20 persons. Research by the authors has shown that invariably the HRM function in micro businesses with less than ten employees rests with the owner of the business. As well as coping with this function, the owner of the micro business has to deal with all the other aspects of business management, not least the provision of the goods or services for which the business was established. This creates tensions and a need for priorities within the small firm and the sector could ignore what is perceived by the owners to be non‐essential activity. Yet the consequences of this could lead to serious business problems.

The purpose of this paper is to ask if customer experiences in public houses (pubs) go wrong because of poor initial and subsequent training for front-line staff, while questioning if enough is being made of employee engagement and socialization as a means to improve consistency within the pub service encounter.

The study applies a critical review of the literature with a focus on the initial and subsequent training of front-line employees in the context of managed and entrepreneur-led pub-retailing operations.

The delivery and impact of a well-designed initial training programme may not only enhance long-term employee engagement and loyalty, but also provide competitive advantage for pub-retail operations through a more consistent service delivery. The paper questions the suitability of the approach currently being adopted within the sector and suggests that change is needed in order to ensure the longer-term survival of pub-retail businesses.

Can reliable and consistent customer experiences be delivered without a more progressive approach to the initial training and engagement of front-line employees?

While the importance of initial and subsequent training is widely accepted, the potential for its poor delivery has an almost predictable impact on many customer experiences. The paper recommends a review of the methods used by managed house and entrepreneurial (tenanted and leasehold) pub-retailing businesses to enhance employee socialization, engagement and loyalty to fuel the sector’s drive to generate greater competitive advantage.

In recent years, the licensed trade in the UK has had to adapt to changing trends in leisure and, simultaneously, cope with major structural change and management reorganisation. Within this context there is an increase in government regulation of the employment world both to full‐time and to other employees. This has extended to enhanced protection of peripheral workers as a current EU priority and the issue of directives. The article outlines the principal changes in the trade and the modern management trends. From there, it proceeds to analyse the impact of some key aspects of the law relating to sex discrimination and its observance by the managers/tenants of public houses. This is limited to the recruitment of staff but touches on sexual harassment and the rights of peripheral workers. An examination of the literature is undertaken and a comparison between the findings from this and the empirical research from a case study is made, exploring the differences between the attitudes of differing categories of licensee. Managers are more compliant with the spirit of the law than tenants and lessees. The consequences of non‐compliance with the law are stressed.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how resort managers respond to employment legislation (Law No. 02/2008).

The qualitative case study data from seven self-contained tourist resorts in the Maldives were used to investigate the managerial responses to employment legislation.

Resort managers’ responses ranged from passive compliance to active resistance, with decoupling through opportunism as the dominant strategy used to circumvent the legislation. Some human resource management (HRM) practices emerged from resort managers’ interactions with external stakeholders and employees. Strategic responses and HRM practices were driven by a search for legitimacy or efficiency and sometimes both. The findings show that there are differences between strategic responses and HRM practices by organisational subfield, local resorts and international hotel chains. The resorts’ market orientation also influenced resort managers’ responses and HRM practices.

The findings of this paper have limitations because it was limited to a single industry/sector and to a particular piece of legislation. However, it demonstrates the complexity of the relationship between institutional context and HRM.

This paper shows that responding to employment legislation entails a high level of interplay between the institutional environment and HR actors, and between stakeholders (e.g. employees) and HR actors. It demonstrates the difficulty of reconciling institutional requirements with the preferences of different stakeholders and organisational interests. HR actors actively make sense of institutional requirements and modify HRM practices to accommodate stakeholders’ varying perspectives and preferences. This suggests that in countries such as the Maldives, uneven institutional coverage (e.g. incomplete employment legislation) allows room for organisations to innovate – for better or worse.

The aim of this study is to present an overview of the factors contributing to the difficulties faced by the public house (pub) sector when analysing the general decline in the number of pubs in the UK seen over recent years.

Due to the nature of the study secondary rather than primary research methods were adopted, although further opportunities to undertake primary research are identified towards the end of the article.

A review of contemporary literature and key industry data has been used to present findings that evaluate the role traditionally played by public houses within society; to examine the changing structure of the pub retailing sector; and to analyse a range of key internal and external factors that have and are contributing to the decline seen in certain elements of the sector, as evidenced in the number of business closures.

Use of both academic and industry‐focussed research articles present a timely and accurate picture of the true situation and general feeling within the sector while suggesting where future research may be undertaken.

The paper offers a number of practical business improvement recommendations that could be taken forward by the sector.

In acknowledging that each pub business is unique due to its form of ownership and the people employed within it, a strategy for survival is outlined for struggling businesses to adopt in order to not only survive in a very difficult trading environment, but also to re‐establish themselves as a central feature of the communities in which they are located.