Employee Relations: An International Journal

John Gennard

2008 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/01425450910916788

Purpose – The purpose of this editorial is to examine moves towards cross border trade union mergers. Design/methodology/approach – This editorial outlines the reasons why trade unions see the need to act outside their nation state boundaries. Findings – In the globalised economy if trade unions are to defend and advance the living standards of their members they cannot confine their activities to their national labour markets. Currently, trade unions attempt to do this via multi‐lateral link ups via Global Trade Union Federations and by developing links with their sister unions in other countries. A new mechanism is now being developed by trade unions to counter balance the economic strength of multi‐nationals, namely cross border trade union mergers. Originality/value – The editorial offers insights into the reasons for, and gives examples, for the emerging trend of the movement towards cross border trade union mergers.

Emma Parry; Clare Kelliher

2008 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/01425450910916797

Purpose – Drug treatment services in the UK have recently undergone significant expansion, alongside the introduction of a set of quality standards, which included the management of people. Consequently, voluntary organisations in this sector have been faced with the dual challenges of meeting these standards and simultaneously attracting and retaining additional staff in an already tight labour market. This paper aims to examine the response of voluntary sector organisations to these pressures within the wider context of the so‐called “contract culture”, whereby, in order to remain competitive, organisations have experienced continuous pressure on labour costs. Design/methodology/approach – This paper reports findings from a large‐scale nation‐wide survey and interviews with HR Managers. Findings – The results showed that these organisations had a range of “good practice” HR policies in place and had made some progress in achieving the quality standards, although many struggled to recruit and retain suitable staff. The consequences of these findings are discussed in relation to the literature on both recruitment and retention and HRM in the voluntary sector. Practical implications – The paper has practical implications for resourcing practice within the wider voluntary sector. Originality/value – The authors have provided a contribution to an under researched field through the examination of the challenges facing voluntary sector drug treatment providers in recent years.

Jakob Lauring; Christa Thomsen

2008 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/01425450910916805

Purpose – The purpose of the paper is to report on a qualitative research illustrating how equal opportunity ideals as part of a corporate CSR identity project are practiced on the local level. Design/methodology/approach – Investigating the practice of CSR identity making, an ethnographic fieldwork methodology relying on longitudinal participant observations and semi‐structured interviews has been applied. Findings – The authors argue that the practice of equal opportunities should be understood as a process of local interpretation of generally formulated ideals. By viewing the content of CSR identity as a socially negotiated process, it is suggested that a dynamic approach to the concept is required. The practice of equal opportunity is a continuously negotiated process of identity making and of locally relating ideals to practice in the negotiation between different stakeholders. Research limitations/implications – The article is based on a single case study with a limited number of informants. Practical implications – This paper has implications for managers who work with CSR initiatives and corporate identity. The authors suggest that policies should be developed in close interaction with the different organizational members. This is necessary in order to manage the mutual expectations. To reach the best results in terms of managing corporate identity, it is necessary to consider CSR as a participative process. Originality/value – Earlier studies on CSR have described corporate identity in static terms, independent of the local practices and interpretations. By applying a process‐oriented theoretical perspective combined with an iterative data collection, new insights into the actual practice of CSR initiatives are provided.

Bård Kuvaas

2008 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/01425450910916814

Purpose – The purpose of this study was to test the relationship between intrinsic motivation and work performance among individuals from a broad cross‐section of job types among public employees with the objectives of contributing to self‐determination theory and assisting public management practice and research. Design/methodology/approach – Respondents were drawn from three municipalities located in Norway. A questionnaire was distributed to 2,015 employees through a web‐based tool (Questback), which resulted in complete data from 779 workers, representing a response rate of approximately 39 per cent. Findings – The findings suggest that the relationships between job autonomy and work performance and task interdependence and work performance are partly mediated by intrinsic motivation, while the relationship between supervisor support for autonomy, competence, and development and work performance is fully mediated by intrinsic motivation. Research limitations/implications – The two most important limitations, which are discussed in more detail at the end of the paper, are the cross‐sectional nature of the study and the reliance on self‐reported questionnaire data. Practical implications – The results support self‐determination theory and suggest that public and private sector managers should pay more attention to autonomy‐supportive work environments. Originality/value – First, a recent review of self‐determination theory casts doubt on the performance implications of intrinsic motivation for less complex or interesting tasks. Thus, in order to increase our knowledge of the quality of self‐determination theory as a work motivation theory, empirical research that spans a broad cross‐section of jobs and functions in organisations is needed. Second, and despite the importance of motivation among public employees in an era of transformation to a more business‐oriented approach, there is little empirical research on public sector employee motivation.

Ashly H. Pinnington; Ken Kamoche; Yuliani Suseno

2008 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/01425450910916823

Purpose – The aim of this paper i s to understand the competitive and collaborative relations existing between people practising in the same professional occupation, but working within different organisation contexts of employment. Design/methodology/approach – An interview study of 42 in‐house and external lawyers is reported and set within contexts of the knowledge management and internationalisation of legal services. The data are analysed from an appropriation‐learning perspective and then discussed for the extent that these two groups make similar claims to property in work. Findings – The in‐house lawyers give highest priority to the protection of resources and knowledge and aim to achieve it through trust in work relationships and by sharing, diffusing and controlling knowledge. By contrast, issues concerning individual reward and empowerment were seen as lower priority. External lawyers attach similar importance to knowledge sharing, its diffusion and control, but have slightly less concern for protecting knowledge and resources. They place less emphasis on trust and seem to value empowerment through legal innovation more so than do the in‐house lawyers. Research limitations/implications – Future research should be conducted on occupational and sub‐groups of knowledge workers to understand more systematically the dynamics of knowledge management, and the opportunities and constraints it creates for employees' property in work. Originality/value – The research contributes to the literature on employees' property claims in work. It reflects on the extent that individuals' work identities must systematically adapt to different organisation contexts and approaches to knowledge management.

Thomas Lange

2008 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/01425450910916832

Purpose – This paper aims to contribute to the growing body of empirical evaluations of workers' subjective well being by assessing the impact of values, beliefs, important job attributes and autonomous institution building on employees' job satisfaction across ten countries in Central and Eastern Europe. Design/methodology/approach – Data derived from the European Values Study 1999/2000 is being utilised, which provides detailed information not only on job satisfaction and socio‐demographic characteristics, but also on individuals' subjective views, beliefs and important job attributes. Following a descriptive narrative on the transformation in emerging market economies, ordered probit regressions are performed to determine the significance of these characteristics, values and beliefs on workers' job satisfaction. Findings – The empirical findings suggest that reported attitudes, values and beliefs and their impact on job satisfaction evince traits of a legacy of communist industrial relations as well as subsequent experiences with economic and social transition. What is more, the study also uncovers the positive influence of trust and confidence in autonomous institution building on workers' job satisfaction, specifically in the context of reformed trade unions, education and social security. Originality/value – In previous studies, job satisfaction has been examined primarily in Western Europe and the USA. In contrast, empirical examinations to identify the determinants of job satisfaction for employees in Central and Eastern Europe have not figured prominently in this literature. This paper adds value by providing robust empirical results for this region.

Ingo Forstenlechner; Fiona Lettice; Markus Tschida

2008 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/01425450910916841

Purpose – This article aims to explore and define the implications of the predominant divide in law firms between fee earners, i.e. lawyers contributing to law firm revenue, and support staff, i.e. employees in back office functions not directly contributing to revenue. To identify steps to improve retention rates among support staff. Design/methodology/approach – A survey was delivered to support staff across four law firms among the top ten UK law firms, out of which 154 valid responses were collected. For the analysis, responses were clustered to identify emerging themes. Additional interviews were also conducted with the aim to clarify emerging themes and deepen understanding of the issues raised. Findings – “You are either a fee earner or a fee burner” sums up the prevailing attitude support staff experiences in law firms. Throughout the responses – regardless of topic – the divide kept resurfacing again and again. In order to retain and motivate talented support staff, law firms will need to revisit their management of support staff and rethink the management of attitude towards them. Research limitations – Law firms are just one professional services sector under increasing competitive pressure, other professional service firms with similar structures, such as consulting or accounting firms have not been included in this research. Practical implications – While support staff ensures the delivery of business critical services in law firms, they are often seen as a disposable cost rather than a business relevant part of the organisation, which leads to frustration and low working morale. Several measures are suggested in this paper to address the management of support staff. Originality/value – This paper addresses an important gap in our knowledge of law firms and legal profession more generally: The work and working conditions of non‐fee earning staff.