Integrating AI ethics to foster employee happiness in high-interaction tourism workplaces

Purpose This study aims to investigate the challenges of integrating artificial intelligence (AI) ethics to enhance employee happiness in high-interaction tourism workplaces, where emotional labor and continuous guest engagement increase stress and affect performance. Design/methodology/approach This study used a mixed-methods approach, combining manager interviews with surveys of 558 employees and 130 managers. Using SmartPLS 4.1.1.4 for nonnormal data and complex mediation, the research is primarily confirmatory while also exploring underexamined intersections of ethical AI and employee happiness in tourism. Findings Results show ethical AI impacts employee well-being (R² = 0.640) more than managers’ (R² = 0.414). Technostress reduction supports employees’ cultural integration, while transparency and fairness enhance managers’ empowerment. Data privacy shapes employee human capital development and hospitality perceptions, indicating role-specific priorities and ethical AI’s potential to boost happiness in service contexts. Originality/value This study provides empirical evidence that ethical AI fosters employee well-being in tourism and hospitality. Offering a replicable framework for other sectors and regions, it links human-centered AI with human capital development, contributing to theory and practice while guiding the creation of employee-focused, ethically responsible AI strategies in service-intensive workplaces.