Hi Sujata,
As an HR professional, you must be aware of the legislations that apply to your company. If you are working in an IT company, for instance, then the following acts will apply, to name a few:
1. Shops & Establishments Act.
2. National & Festival Holidays Act.
3. Payment of Wages Act, etc.
You need to first check what laws are applicable to your company. Then, read the bare act, related rules, and see the forms to be submitted to the Labour Department under the acts. It is essential that you read the bare acts.
Don't you have a legal consultant for your company? If you do, then hold a discussion to understand the legislations and compliance needs. If you don't, it's better to engage one as a retainer. You may need one if any matter goes to the labor court.
But, one thing I want to emphasize.
Being an HR generalist does not mean having superficial knowledge about HR activities, such as coordinating with recruitment consultants, post-recruitment formalities, etc. If that is the case, then a secretary can do that job. HR is already a specialist role, within which there are very specialized areas - for example, OD. A general physician does not question whether they should have knowledge about the basics of the medical profession.
Legislations are fundamentally important as they provide the legal framework for any company's business.
In fact, as an HR generalist, you must know about the labor legislations that apply to your company. You need not worry much about legislations if you are an HR specialist like an OD specialist, PMS Specialist, Training Specialist, Recruitment Specialist, etc.
Therefore, the law is more crucial for the HR generalist than the specialist.
Start learning from now on, at least.
Jeevaneyan