Employee Relations: An International Journal

Lain, David ; Loretto, Wendy

2016 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/ER-04-2015-0062

Purpose– Against a backdrop of legislative and policy changes, this paper assesses the extent to which the over-65 age-group is moving from the margins to the mainstream of UK employment. The purpose of this paper is to fill a gap in HR research and practice which, it is argued, has paid relatively little attention to the over-65s. Design/methodology/approach– The analysis draws on three waves of the Labour Force Survey (LFS) (2001, 2008, 2014), to explore the extent to which organisational, occupational and sectoral marginalisation of the over-65s has changed in the twenty-first century. Findings– The results show that the share of 65-69 year olds working as employees doubled between 2001 and 2014, primarily because long-term established employees worked longer. Overrepresentations of lower-level “Lopaq” occupations reduced, and over-65s became more integrated across occupations and sectors. Research limitations/implications– More research is needed to understand the factors driving the steady move from the margins to the mainstream (e.g. LFS does not measure pensions), and future research on the older workforce should automatically include workers in this age-group. Practical implications– The discussion considers the implications for managerial practice, in a context of increasingly age-diverse workforces. Originality/value– This paper addresses a gap in research into later life working and also demonstrates the ways in which the nature of employment among the over-65s is changing, thereby challenging some of the assumptions about those who work into later life and how they are – or should be managed.

de Waal, Andre

2016 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/ER-07-2015-0146

Purpose– Ever since the introduction of Investors in People (IiP), a management framework for high performance invented by the UK Government aimed at improving the UK’s industrial performance, there has been indistinctness about whether IiP actually improved organisational performance. The academic literature gives conflicting evidence and almost 25 years after the first exposure to IiP this issue has not been settled yet. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach– In this paper the literature on the effects of IiP on organisational performance is collected and discussed, to try to give a definitive answer on the question what the effect of IiP is or should be. Findings– After reviewing the evidence, the paper raises the question whether asking the question if IiP increases organisational performance is actually a relevant one. This is because IiP was originally intended to be the standard against which organisation could be evaluated and subsequently rewarded for excellent human resource management (HRM) practices. In the core this means that IiP consist of a set of by experts agreed upon indicators related to HRM practices which together form the yardstick against which organisations are measured. Originality/value– This paper is the first one to actually create clarity of what the IiP standard actually is and how it should be perceived and applied by organisations and academics alike.

Lee, Hwanwoo; Werner, Steve; Kim, Tae-Yeol

2016 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/ER-08-2015-0165

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to test the effect of human resource systems on organization attraction. Furthermore, the authors theorize and test how the vocational interests of prospective employees can serve as boundary conditions that affect the relationship between high-performance work systems (HPWs) and organization attraction. Design/methodology/approach– To achieve these ends, this study conducts a scenario-based experiment with prospective employees to examine the effects of HPWs and vocational interests on organization attraction. Findings– The authors demonstrated that HPWs is an important feature for organization attraction. Despite the generally positive linkage between HPWs and organization attraction, the most important implication of the findings is that job applicants also have an important role in responding to the features being used by a firm to attract applicants through HPWs. For example, potential job applicants with higher (rather than lower) social vocational interests are more likely to be attracted to the HPWs of firms. Research limitations/implications– This study has limitations that must be considered. In particular, the authors treated HPWs as a unidimensional construct. Given the study design, it is unclear whether the attraction effects are driven by HPWs as a whole or whether they are being driven by any single or multiple component(s) of the system. Future research needs to consider examining how specific practices are matched with specific vocational interests by using multiple scenarios where they bundle different high-performance work practices. Doing so would further the understanding of which specific practices affect attraction and for whom. Originality/value– This study contributes to the authors’ knowledge of the effects of HPWs on organization attraction. In addition, job applicants’ social vocational interest plays an important role in strengthening the relationship between HPWs and organization attraction.

App, Stefanie; Büttgen, Marion

2016 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/ER-06-2015-0122

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether both perceived sustainable organizational and supervisor support, which represent a sustainable human resource management (HRM) approach, can induce commitment to the employer brand. Design/methodology/approach– This study includes a diverse sample of 3,016 employees drawn from various German organizations. To test the developed hypotheses, a structural model that included all the hypothesized effects was built, using Mplus 7. Findings– Perceived sustainable supervisor support (PSSS) has a direct effect on brand commitment, whereas perceived sustainable organizational support (PSOS) only generates brand commitment indirectly, mediated by brand prestige, brand distinctiveness, and brand trust. The findings further underline that, compared with PSOS, PSSS has a stronger impact on trust in respect of the employer brand. Originality/value– By considering current employees and their commitment to the employer brand, this study takes an insider view and sheds new light on how an employer brand based on sustainable HRM can achieve commitment, as well as how several mediators affect this link.

Wang, Kan

2016 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/ER-03-2016-0065

Purpose– Drawing its arguments and conclusion from a ten-year survey on workers’ experiences of labour disputes, along with anticipation of trade union reform, the purpose of this paper is to discuss the interaction between labour resistance and its potential for institutional change in the field of labour relations in China. Design/methodology/approach– This paper uses a longitudinal cohort study carried out between 2006 and 2015. The survey was conducted every two years, specifically in 2006, 2008, 2011, 2013 and 2015, in Guangdong Province, China. Questionnaire and interview methods were used; 2,166 valid sample questionnaires were collected, and 215 interviews were carried out over the research period. Findings– An increase in collectivized disputes in China has given rise to an escalation of labour action, characterized by wildcat strikes. Joint action has strengthened the bonds among work colleagues, and it has become more important for workers to pay attention to their rights and interests. In terms of organization, two viewpoints towards union reform were revealed: the pragmatist and the idealist perspectives. Workers with greater experience of resistance were more modest in terms of demands for union reform, while workers with some experience called for their union’s independence from the party-state. Research limitations/implications– The data contained industry bias, as too many respondents were from electronics-manufacturing and textile and apparel plants. Originality/value– This paper is original, and increases awareness of the development of the labour movement in China.

Lu, Xinxin; Tu, Yidong; Li, Yanping; Ho, Chiang-Chun

2016 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/ER-09-2015-0181

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to investigate the affective and normative mechanisms linking high-commitment human resource management (HCHRM) to employee turnover intention. Accordingly, the authors hypothesize that positive affect and group job satisfaction mediate the relationship between HCHRM and turnover intention. Design/methodology/approach– Based on a sample of 471 employees and their supervisors from 53 assembly lines in China, the hypotheses were tested with hierarchical linear modeling. Findings– The results suggested that both positive affect and group job satisfaction significantly mediated the negative relationship between HCHRM and turnover intention. Moreover, the indirect effect of HCHRM on turnover intention via group job satisfaction was larger than that via positive affect. Practical implications– In the Chinese context, HCHRM practices are effective in reducing turnover intention of the first-line employees on assembly lines. Organizations should show concerns for front-line workers’ positive affect and group job satisfaction to reduce their turnover intention. Originality/value– The present research contributes to the extant literatures by uncovering the affective and normative mechanisms of the HCHRM-turnover intention association.

Peng, Yen-Chun; Chen, Liang-Ju; Chang, Chen-Chieh; Zhuang, Wen-Long

2016 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/ER-01-2016-0014

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between workplace bullying and workplace deviance. This study also examined the mediating effect of emotional exhaustion and the moderating effect of core self-evaluations (CSE) in the relationship between workplace bullying and workplace deviance. Design/methodology/approach– Convenience sampling was used in this study; 262 caregivers at a long-term care institution in Taiwan participated in the study. Findings– The results of this study showed that workplace bullying positively and significantly influenced workplace deviance; emotional exhaustion fully mediated the relationship between workplace bullying and deviance; and CSE significantly moderated the relationship between workplace bullying and deviance. Research limitations/implications– The self-reporting method and cross-sectional research design adopted in this study might have resulted in common method variance and limited the ability to make causal inferences. This study suggest future studies to obtain measures of predictor and criterion variables from different sources or ensure a temporal, proximal, or psychological separation between predictor and criterion in the collection of data to avoid the common method bias. Practical implications– Businesses should establish a friendly work environment and prevent employees from encountering workplace bullying. Next, an unbiased process for internal complaints should be established. Finally, this study suggests recruiting employees with high CSE. Originality/value– This study was the first to simultaneously consider the effect of emotional exhaustion (a mediator) and CSE (a moderator) on the relationship between workplace bullying and workplace deviance.

Adisa, Toyin Ajibade; Osabutey, Ellis; Gbadamosi, Gbolahan

2016 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/ER-11-2015-0211

Purpose– An important theme for a twenty-first century employee is a desire for work and family balance which is devoid of conflict. Drawing on detailed empirical research, the purpose of this paper is to examine the multi-faceted causes and consequences of work-family conflict (WFC) in a non-Western context (Nigeria). Design/methodology/approach– The paper uses qualitative data gleaned from the semi-structured interviews of 88 employees (44 university lecturers and 44 medical doctors) in cities in the six geo-political zones of Nigeria. Findings– The findings showed that work pressure, heavy familial duties, poor infrastructural facilities, and a lack of suitable and practicable work-family balance policies are the main causes of WFC in Nigeria. Juvenile delinquencies, broken marriages/families, and an unhappy workforce are among the grave consequences of WFC among Nigerian employees. Originality/value– This paper suggests that the availability of basic infrastructural facilities, more governmental support, practicable work-family policies, inter alia, will reduce the level of WFC for Nigerian employees and will also results in positive spill-over from the work domain to the family domain and vice-versa.

Thursfield, Denise; Grayley, Katy

2016 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/ER-08-2015-0167

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to explore performance management in four UK trade unions. Specifically, the extent to which managers in the four unions accept or dismiss the unitarist, disciplinary and performative values that arguably characterise performance management practices. Design/methodology/approach– A qualitative research design was adopted to investigate trade union managers’ interpretations of performance management. Managers were targeted because they held the power to shape performance management practices in their specific areas. The research employed qualitative semi-structured interviews. Findings– Performance management in trade unions is linked to the structure, purpose and orientation of different types of trade union. It is also linked to the wider environmental context. The trade union managers’ interpretations of performance management are linked to disciplinary and performative values. As such they are comparable to the unitarist forms of performance management described in the literature. There are moreover, similarities and differences between the approaches to performance management between trade unions and for profit or public sector organisations. Originality/value– The paper adds to the emerging literature on internal trade union management by highlighting a particular aspect of human resource management.

D'Cruz, Premilla; Paull, Megan; Omari, Maryam; Guneri-Cangarli, Burcu

2016 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/ER-06-2015-0116

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to explore target experiences of workplace bullying across Australia, India and Turkey, uncovering cross-cultural convergence and divergence. Design/methodology/approach– A questionnaire-based qualitative data survey of business school students with current/prior work experience (n=399) was undertaken. In total, 114 respondents (57 Australian, 34 Indian, 23 Turkish) identified themselves as targets of workplace bullying. Close-ended data pertaining to sociodemographic details were analysed via Statistical Package for the Social Sciences for descriptive statistics while open-ended data pertaining to experiences of bullying were thematically analysed against pre-figured categories derived from literature. Findings– Manifestations of, etiology of and coping with workplace bullying were similar across all three countries, highlighting cultural universals. Clear variations in source of bullying behaviour and availability and use of formal interventions as well as more subtle variations relating to coexistence with category-based harassment, outcomes and bystander behaviour underscored the influence of national culture. Research limitations/implications– Inclusion of a student population, notwithstanding their work experience, as well as reliance on the questionnaire as a tool pose limits in terms of external validity and communication congruence. Practical implications– Understanding into the similarities and differences of workplace bullying across cultures facilitates the design of interventions tailor-made for a particular society, serving as inputs for international/multi-national and offshored business enterprises. Originality/value– The study, focusing on multiple aspects of target experiences, not only draws on both dimensional and metaphorical cross-cultural frameworks but also includes geographically dispersed and socially diverse nations. Thus, it extends insights from previous cross-cultural explorations of workplace bullying which, apart from being few in number, are limited either by their frameworks, spatial range and/or thematic coverage.