Vendor compliance refers to the ongoing verification and documentation that contractors and vendors engaged by a principal employer are meeting all their statutory obligations under Indian labour laws. This includes: EPF contributions (Employees’ Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952); ESIC contributions (Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948); minimum wage payments as prescribed under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948; Labour Welfare Fund contributions under applicable state LWF Acts; CLRA licence maintenance under the Contract Labour (R&A) Act, 1970; Professional Tax deductions in applicable states; and timely filing of all required half-yearly and annual returns. The reason vendor compliance is critical for the principal employer — and not merely the contractor’s problem — is that multiple Indian labour laws make the principal employer jointly and severally liable for a contractor’s statutory defaults.