Employee Relations: An International Journal

Yanson, Regina; Doucet, Jessica M.; Lambert, Alysa D.

2022 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-02-2020-0074

The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between employee age and intimidation in the workplace. Dysfunctional employee behaviors such as harassment and aggression are harmful to the organizational work environment. Such destructive behaviors have long been viewed as negatively impacting organizational success. Additionally, the age dynamics in organizations are rapidly changing as the “graying of America” progresses, older workers remain in the workforce and younger workers delay employment.Design/methodology/approach The study utilizes data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation's National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS), which is a national database containing information on crime in the US.NIBRS was used to measure the occurrence of workplace violence overall, and workplace intimidation specifically, in the restaurant industry, as well as the ages of both victims and perpetrators of work-related violence.Findings Results revealed that younger workers are more likely to perpetrate workplace intimidation than their senior counterparts. As victim age increases, employees are more likely to report intimidation than more serious crimes.Practical implications Workplace intimidation prevention programs do not typically include age as a factor. This study may be helpful to managers and HR managers charged with developing workplace training programs.Originality/value The results of this study contribute to the shared understanding of dysfunctional workplace dynamics. As the workforce collectively ages, organizations should acknowledge the potential impact age may have on violence in the workplace.

Gaillard, Hugo

2022 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-02-2021-0053

Religious expression at work (REW) has a unique place in France. The authors studied the perception of the postures of four organizations in the face of this phenomenon, focusing on the gap between official posture and the posture applied by managers.Design/methodology/approachUsing a qualitative approach, the authors conducted semi-structured interviews (40), observation periods and documentary analysis within four organizations. This multiple embedded case study was undertaken in four different firms in France: an international private firm, a public organization, and two small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with original models of REW management.FindingsA distinction between aligned and non-aligned postures emerged. There was a lack of alignment in only two of the four organizations, and this alignment concerned only two units of analysis: prayer on break and wearing religious symbols. Several extrinsic factors were identified in this lack of alignment between the official posture and the posture actually applied by managers: the form of REW, the religion concerned and whether it had minority status in the country, the degree of clarity of the official posture, the degree of formalization of the official posture, the size and scope of the company, the degree of awareness of managers and their teams, the degree of involvement of leaders in the definition and implementation of the posture, and the purpose of the official posture.Research limitations/implicationsThis research provides a sensitive understanding of religious expression at work and shows that alignment is sought specifically for each form of REW. The distinction between official posture and applied posture is highlighted through the study of perceptions. In addition, this study enables the identification of factors that influence the alignment of official and operational postures.Practical implicationsThese results call for clarity of the official posture and for it to be defended by leaders, provision of meaning to postures by raising awareness among intermediate hierarchical lines, understanding of the applicable legal framework to transpose it to the local level, and analysis of unaligned forms of REW to build a strong, shared posture.Originality/valueThis study, which was carried out within a specific French context, concerns areas that have received little attention or have not been studied at all to date, such as REW in SMEs or in the public sector, and demonstrates for the first time the distinction between official postures and effective postures.

Mousa, Mohamed; Samara, Georges

2022 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-04-2021-0170

Through addressing academics in four public business schools in Egypt, the authors of this paper aim to uncover how meaningful work might shape the mental health of the addressed academics post COVID-19.Design/methodology/approachThe author employed a qualitative research method through semi-structured interviews with 44 academics from four business schools selected from among 25 public institutions of higher education in Egypt. The author subsequently used thematic analysis to determine the main ideas in the transcripts.FindingsThe authors’ findings show that business academics usually consider meaningful work as playing a major role in shaping their mental health, especially after a crisis. This indicates that the more they perceive their jobs as valuable and worthwhile, the more they can deal with limitations and mental health issues (e.g. anxiety, stress, inadequate sleep, etc.) that accompany crisis. The findings also show that during the time of the COVID-19 crisis, employees (business academics in this case) have not placed so much importance to their autonomy (ability to choose and/or participate in decision-making processes) in the workplace. Instead, they care more about their relatedness (sense of belongingness) and their level of competence (sense of capability). Accordingly, the authors show that having academics that develop a sense of purpose for their academic duties in a time of crisis has less mental health disorders. Subsequently, post crisis, business academics can feel a continuous sense of relatedness and find ongoing opportunities to work and learn.Originality/valueThis paper contributes by filling a gap in HR management, in which empirical studies on the relationship between mental health and meaningful work have been limited so far.

Salimova, Guzel; Ableeva, Alisa; Galimova, Aygul; Bakirova, Ramzilya; Lubova, Tatiana; Sharafutdinov, Aidar; Araslanbaev, Irek

2022 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-03-2021-0111

Using the example of Russia, this paper studied and analyzed productivity of the labor force in agriculture as an important industry for ensuring the sustainable development of the country.Design/methodology/approachAt the first examination stage, the time series of data on labor productivity and real wages in agri-food companies were examined as modern works on the matter tend to highlight the relationship between productivity and remuneration insufficiently. At the second stage, labor productivity was assessed through the rate of change in the share of wages in the gross domestic product. At the last stage, an applied model of the relationship between labor productivity in agriculture and various impact factors was developed.FindingsIt showed that the efficiency of the labor force in the considered area depends greatly on technical equipment and crop yield. Besides, the study findings revealed that the traditional economic relationship between productivity and wages is invalid in the examined regions of Russia. There is a significant reserve for increasing labor productivity by providing additional motivation for employees.Originality/valueThe successful development of agricultural production can be achieved by implementing innovations, facilitating digitalization, attracting investments, increasing the level of interest of those employed in labor results and producing high-quality goods.

Chen, Ying; Sun, Yuanyuan

2022 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-07-2020-0360

This study investigates, from a resource dependence perspective, the effects of domestic private firms' political connections and economic power on their labor law compliance in China.Design/methodology/approachThis study used data from a large-scale nationwide survey on Chinese domestic private firms, the Chinese Private Enterprise Survey collected from 2004 to 2012, to examine factors of interest that affect firms' compliance to labor laws. Hypotheses were tested using OLS regression models with robust standard errors.FindingsThe results indicate that domestic private firms' institutional political connections specified by the presence of a union or a Chinese Communist Party committee is positively related to firms' labor law compliance, and firm owners' formal political connections indicated by their membership in the People's Congress or the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference have a somewhat negative effect. The post-hoc analysis shows that firm owners' political representation at the county and city levels is negatively related with labor law compliance, while the political representation at the national level is positively related to labor law compliance. Moreover, the economic power of a domestic private firm is related positively to its labor law compliance. Finally, although the authors did not find evidence that the 2008 Labor Contract Law increased labor contract coverage, it did increase pension coverage after 2008.Research limitations/implicationsThe present study reveals a more refined relationship between domestic private firm owners’ political connections and the degree of labor law compliance. It also demonstrates that the economic power of domestic private firms has a positive effect on their labor law compliance. This implies the importance of the contribution of domestic private firms to economic and social development in China, warranting continued support of the development of the private sector in China.Originality/valueThis study adds to the sparse literature on the determinants of domestic private firms' labor law compliance in China. It also sheds light on whether political connections and the rising economic power of Chinese domestic private firms influence their compliance with labor laws.

Diers-Lawson, Audra; Collins, Lorraine

2022 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-03-2021-0115

The central aim of this research is to deepen the analysis of the influence that crises have on employee relations by using the stakeholder relationship management model (SRM) to analyze organizational employee relationship management (OERM).Design/methodology/approach This study uses a questionnaire distributed in two organizations (UK-based public sector and private sector) that were experiencing a crisis at the time of data collection. Respondents identified whether they believed the organization was in crisis, if they defined it as in crisis classified what type of crisis it was, and then responded to questions about their relationship to the organization, the organization's post crisis stability and their own behavioral intentions.FindingsThe findings verify the applicability of the SRM in employee relations with three critical findings: (1) employees with higher income in the private sector were significantly less likely to believe their organization was in crisis; (2) the more ambiguous the blame for the crisis, the greater the damage on the relationship between organizations and employees; and (3) collective sensemaking in organizations is essential, but less likely when a crisis has damaged the relationship between employees and organizations.Originality/value In the last 40 years of Employee Relations, the role of crisis in influencing OERM has not been meaningfully explored in the journal. Therefore, the piece makes an original contribution.

Latukha, Marina; Michailova, Snejina; Ott, Dana L.; Khasieva, Daria; Kostyuk, Darya

2022 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-04-2021-0132

There is a substantial void in the understanding of the effect of talent management (TM) practices specifically targeted at females on firm performance. This paper investigates the relationship between female-focused TM and firm performance with the aim of demonstrating the importance of gender diversity in firms.Design/methodology/approachThe authors developed and empirically tested a contextually embedded model using data from 103 multinational corporations in Russia to examine the effect of female-focused TM on firm performance.FindingsThe authors found an overall positive relationship between female-focused TM and firm performance. The authors’ analysis also revealed significant positive effects of female-focused talent development and talent retention, but not talent attraction, on firm performance.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to the vibrant TM scholarship by focusing on female-focused talent attraction, development and retention practices.

Lee, Amber Yun-Ping; Chang, Po-Chien; Chang, Heng-Yu

2022 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-06-2021-0251

The purpose is to examine the cross-level relationship between workplace fun and informal learning with workplace friendship as a mediator and team climate as a moderator.Design/methodology/approachAdopting a two-wave survey procedure, data were collected from 251 employees working across 45 teams of a leading heat transfer manufacturer in Asia. Hierarchical linear modeling was used to test our hypothesized cross-level moderated mediation model.FindingsOut of the three forms of workplace fun, only two – manager support for fun and coworker socializing – supported our hypotheses. Therefore, not all types of workplace fun are equal and one of the key factors through which fun influences informal learning is by maintaining harmonious interpersonal interactions and high relationship quality in teams.Originality/valueBased on social interdependence theory, this study uncovers the cross-level mechanism of how workplace fun affects informal learning. The findings extend existing research on workplace fun by focusing on not only individual factors but also interpersonal and contextual elements. The findings also provide practical implications for managers to understand the possible impact of workplace fun on employees' informal learning.

Ruiner, Caroline; Klumpp, Matthias

2022 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-04-2021-0139

Digitalization is changing organizations with positive and negative impacts such as increased autonomy on the one hand and increased surveillance and control on the other hand. In this context, new modes of control occur: in addition to managerial control, new modes of control are multi-directed, stemming from colleagues, customers and underlying algorithms. This paper investigates the interrelation of autonomy and new modes of control in digital work contexts from the workers’ perspectives.Design/methodology/approach Empirical data are based on a mixed-methods approach combining qualitative interviews with 25 and a quantitative questionnaire with 127 workers from urban food logistics organizations in Germany.Findings The results show that new modes of control are relevant for work engagement in digital work contexts: managerial and algorithm control are perceived as support. Peer and customer control are perceived as coercion.Originality/value Besides investigating the interrelation of autonomy and control and differentiating new modes of control, our study also makes important contributions to the perception of control as support and coercion.

Gaspani, Fabio

2022 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-12-2020-0535

In line with the escapist dimension of hospitality settings, the article investigates how the front office staff of high-end hotels deal with clients' secret sexual encounters.Design/methodology/approachThe article draws on data collected through a participant observation study conducted in two high-end hotels in Milan (Italy), during which the author held the role of front-line receptionist.FindingsThe research illustrates the ways in which workers frame events and conduct operations to guarantee the appropriate conditions for guests' extra-marital adventures and paid sexual encounters. In revealing the role of shared knowledge as well as non-formalised procedures in meeting guests' needs, the article shows how employees seek to protect their own work and the hotel's image.Originality/valueThe article sheds light on the very features of high-end service work by illustrating how workers satisfy clients' secret needs and unexpressed demands.