Showing papers in "Employee Relations in 2012"
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explored the relationship between perceptions of performance appraisal fairness and employee engagement in the Indian business context and found a significant positive association between distributive and informational justice dimensions and engagement.
Abstract: Purpose – Performance appraisal is one of the most important human resource management practices as it yields critical decisions integral to various human resource actions and outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between perceptions of performance appraisal fairness and employee engagement in the Indian business context.Design/methodology/approach – The study was conducted in two parts. The first part explored the relationship between justice perceptions and a one‐dimensional conceptualization of engagement. The second part explored the relationship between justice perceptions and a three‐dimensional conceptualization of engagement. The relationships between justice perceptions and engagement were analyzed using zero‐order correlations and hierarchical regression analysis.Findings – The study findings suggest a significant positive association between distributive and informational justice dimensions and employee engagement. Distributive justice and informational justice dime...
142 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the potential links between organizational justice, organizational commitment and job performance in a developing country and found that organizational justice is positively and significantly correlated with affective and continuance commitment as well as with job performance.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the potential links between organizational justice, organizational commitment (employees’ loyalty) and job performance in a developing country. It also focuses on the experiences and perceptions of fairness/justice in the workplace, and how such perceptions predict organizational commitment and job performance.Design/methodology/approach – A survey was conducted in an organizational setting composed of three government organizations. The sample comprises 500 full‐time employees. The data were collected through a self‐administered questionnaire and analyzed using SPSS.Findings – The findings show that organizational justice (procedural, interactional) is positively and significantly correlated with affective and continuance commitment as well as with job performance. In addition, the result of the statistical forms support the moderating effect of affective and continuance commitment of high job performance.Research limitations/implications – The sample rep...
128 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the passive, aggressive, and assertive styles of managers/supervisors that influence perceived supervisory support and to test whether the support increases employees' satisfaction with the communication of supervisors and their organisation-based self-esteem.
Abstract: Purpose – Through the lens of social exchange theory and organisation support theory, the purpose of this paper is to examine the passive, aggressive, and assertive styles of managers/supervisors that influence perceived supervisory support and to test whether the support increases employees’ satisfaction with the communication of supervisors and their organisation‐based self‐esteem. It also assesses whether employees’ communication satisfaction and their self‐esteem influence employees’ performance, commitment and absenteeism.Design/methodology/approach – In total, 400 employees from ten manufacturing firms in India were studied through questionnaire survey. Standard instruments were used to assess the constructs. A scale was developed to measure the communication style of managers and a single item to assess absenteeism.Findings – Results revealed that assertive style of communication lends maximum support to employees. Perceived supervisory support at the workplace enhances employees’ satisfaction with...
77 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors analyse the consequences of the increasing prominence of soft skills, focusing specifically on the production of these skills and their recognition and recruitment, and show that the personification of the service labour process encourages the development of specific human resource management practices.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse the consequences of the increasing prominence of soft skills, focusing specifically on the production of these skills and their recognition and recruitment.Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws on interviews conducted with managers in the service sector in France. Two types of services are covered: large‐scale retailing and hotel and catering services.Findings – The paper shows that the demand for soft skills has caused the service labour process to become highly personified and underline the risks this entails.Practical implications – The personification of the service labour process encourages the development of specific human resource management practices in the spheres of recruitment, pay and training.Social implications – The results underline the need for institutional mediation in the regulation of the labour market. The personification of skills has many social implications in terms of discrimination and policies on training and skill recog...
57 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the impact of perceived cultural differences in forging identity in virtual teams and highlighted the importance of encouraging team members to value and understand differences and that it is necessary to promote a common goal to foster identification in international virtual teams.
Abstract: – This paper aims to examine the impact of perceived cultural differences in forging identity in virtual teams. Whilst there has been a great deal of research on team identification, little has been written about the influences of the virtual context on this process., – The study reported in this paper was conducted in four companies and seven virtual teams operating across the UK, the USA, Brazil, Singapore, Malaysia and Myanmar., – The results show that perceived differences in national cultures and the way people work within the cultures has a significant impact on identification in virtual teams. This can lead to unhealthy racial and national stereotypes, which cause conflict between team members. The findings of this study highlight the importance of encouraging team members to value and understand differences and that it is necessary to promote a common goal to foster identification in international virtual teams., – The research provides a critical analysis of virtual working across international boundaries, focusing on employees rather than the technology.
56 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined whether trust in teammates and trust in management influenced transactive memory and how strongly transactive memories, in turn, influenced perceived team performance and job satisfaction.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine, in two studies, whether trust in teammates and trust in management influenced transactive memory and how strongly transactive memory, in turn, influenced perceived team performance and job satisfaction.Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected via questionnaires from two samples of employees (n1=383 and n2=40). Regression and mediational analyses were employed to test the hypotheses.Findings – Trust in teammates predicted transactive memory and transactive memory, in turn, predicted perceived team performance and job satisfaction. Trust in management did not predict transactive memory, but it did predict job satisfaction.Research limitations/implications – Data are cross‐sectional and cannot establish cause‐effect‐relationships. Furthermore, objective performance measures could not be obtained due to the nature of the studies. Thus, future studies need to use longitudinal or experimental designs and objective performance measures.Practical implica...
51 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors analyse the cross-cultural reasons underlying the extreme industrial unrest experienced during the first seven years of Toyota's operations in India and report how Toyotism shares three common features with Brahminism and how antipathy towards the manner in which these features were implemented in India caused significant resistance amongst the production workforce.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse the cross‐cultural reasons underlying the extreme industrial unrest experienced during the first seven years of Toyota’s operations in India.Design/methodology/approach – The paper employs a case study approach using data obtained from 30 personal interviews, field notes, observations, and internet media sources.Findings – The paper reports how Toyotism shares three common features with Brahminism – renunciation, performance, and perfection – and how antipathy towards the manner in which these features were implemented in India caused significant resistance amongst the production workforce.Research limitations/implications – The paper has implications for academics and practitioners in helping to understand how employee relations, unrest and antagonism towards lean manufacturing practices are closely related to cross‐cultural issues prevalent in host countries.Originality/value – The concept of Brahmanism in Indian employee relations is under‐researched in...
50 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the psychosomatic model of downward workplace bullying in different cultures and found that bullying and negative affect is a variform universal in both the Australian and the Ugandan samples.
Abstract: Purpose – The main purpose of this paper is to examine the psychosomatic model of downward workplace bullying in different cultures.Design/methodology/approach – A cross‐sectional design was used. Participants were teachers in government and non‐government high schools in Australia and the Republic of Uganda. Participants completed a self‐report questionnaire.Findings – The psychosomatic model is supported for both the Australian and the Ugandan samples. However, the relationship between bullying and physical symptoms is fully mediated by negative affect for the Australian sample but partially mediated for the Ugandan sample. The correlation between bullying and negative affect is stronger for the Australian sample than for the Ugandan sample.Research limitations/implications – The psychosomatic model was extended by including culture as a moderator of the bullying‐negative affect relationship. The findings show that the psychosomatic model of workplace bullying is a variform universal. All participants a...
38 citations
TL;DR: The authors explored the perceptions of managers and employees towards an individual's decision to go to work, despite being unwell, a phenomenon known as presenteeism in the literature and found that those who are unwell are likely to take into consideration a combination of factors before deciding whether to come into work or take sick leave.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the perceptions of managers and employees, in one private and one public sector organization, towards an individual's decision to go to work, despite being unwell, a phenomenon known as presenteeism in the literatureDesign/methodology/approach – Qualitative interviews (n=33) were used to investigate the personal beliefs and attitudes of managers and employees towards presenteeism in an attempt to understand why individuals come into work, despite being unwell, rather than taking time off workFindings – This paper explores the factors that influence an individual's decision to come into work despite being ill Employees who are unwell are likely to take into consideration a combination of factors before deciding whether to come into work or take sick leave The study's findings highlight the importance of both the work environment and an individual's personal motivation, including their work ethic, on presenteeism, providing further evidence that context
35 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated how teamwork contributes to successful maintenance practice within maintenance work in an industrial setting, and found that a high degree of team autonomy was an important contributor to success; a point not previously emphasized in the literature.
Abstract: Purpose – The paper aims to investigate how teamwork contributes to successful maintenance practice within maintenance work in an industrial setting.Design/methodology/approach – Qualitative data were gathered from a single case. This includes interviews, participatory observation and document collection.Findings – The findings suggest that even though TPM is originally a technologically‐based concept, the explanations for success or failure are mainly organisational, pointing to management style, collaboration between maintenance and production, involvement and teamwork. This case study shows that a high degree of team autonomy was an important contributor to success; a point not previously emphasized in the literature.Research limitations/implications – The paper provides a deep understanding of a unique case, but should be supplemented with more data in order to reach general conclusions.Practical implications – Many companies struggle with implementing total productive maintenance. The paper provides ...
34 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors used a qualitative approach through interviews with 54 front-line employees in three retail organizations: food, clothing and electronic goods, and found four different forms of negative word-of-mouth behaviours which are labelled customer-oriented, anti-management/firm, employee-oriented and anti-competitor.
Abstract: Purpose – The aim of this article is to supply grounded empirical insights into the forms of negative word-of-mouth by front-line, customer contact employees.
Design/methodology/approach – The article adopts a qualitative approach through interviews with 54 front-line employees in three retail organizations: food, clothing and electronic goods.
Findings – The paper finds four different forms of negative word-of-mouth behaviours which are labelled customer-oriented, anti-management/firm, employee-oriented and anti-competitor word-of-mouth. The paper shows how each of these behaviours varied in terms of the target audience (the intended listeners), the focus of attention (the focal point of comments), the motivation (the perceived rationale for the behaviour) and the extent to which employees perceived their own comments to be truthful.
Research limitations/implications – The article calls for an expansion of research horizon to incorporate a fuller understanding of the dynamics of employee (mis)behaviour in the workplace in relation to resistance, subjectivity, instrumentality and clandestine control of certain aspects of workplace dynamics.
Practical implications – The findings suggest that managers should be concerned with front-line employee negative word-of-mouth especially because some of the examples which were uncovered are potentially damaging to both financial and non financial performance measures.
Originality/value – The article contributes insights into the neglected area of employee negative word-of-mouth. The article argues that the identification of the forms of employee negative word-of-mouth is an important step towards developing a theory of employee negative word-of-mouth that is especially pertinent to front-line service work. The article develops a series of propositions which future researchers may find useful in advancing research in this area.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the practice of teamwork in an under-researched, yet growing industrial setting and found that the Team Dimensions Model, with the addition of a customer service perspective, is of use for identifying managerial objectives and organisational outcomes of teamwork.
Abstract: Purpose – This paper aims to examine the practice of teamwork in an under‐researched, yet growing industrial setting.Design/methodology/approach – Longitudinal ethnographic‐styled methods of data collection were used and data was examined using the Team Dimensions Model.Findings – The findings suggest the Team Dimensions Model, with the addition of a customer service perspective, is of use for identifying managerial objectives and organisational outcomes of teamwork. However, this does not suggest that teamworking is easy to implement in the hospitality setting.Research limitations/implications – The findings were obtained using unobtrusive participatory and observational methods and based on a single company.Practical implications – The paper allows management practitioners to reflect on realities of implementing teamworking under a corporate customer service initiative.Originality/value – The paper takes an existing theory on teamworking and develops the theory in an under‐researched and growing industr...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined reasons why social influence is a key factor in job choice decisions of relatively young job seekers and found that respondents did not see themselves as acting based on social influence as much as they perceived others around them to be.
Abstract: Purpose – Past research has largely portrayed job choice as a relatively rational and goal‐directed behavior where applicants make decisions contingent on organizational recruitment activities, or evaluations of job and organizational attributes. Research now informs us that job choice decisions may also be based on social comparisons and social influence. The purpose of this paper is to add to this body of knowledge by examining reasons why social influence is a key factor in job choice decisions of relatively young job seekers.Design/methodology/approach – The study is based on in‐depth interview data from graduating seniors at an elite business school in India.Findings – Respondents did not see themselves as acting based on social influence as much as they perceived others around them to be. Reasons they noted for others’ socially influenced job choice decisions were: peers and seniors are seen as more accessible and trustworthy than organizations; organizations do not share all and/or objective data, ...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated the relationship between transformational and transactional leadership, and labour flexibility within small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), using a sample comprising 755 employees, rating 121 supervisors within 50 Dutch small and medium sized companies.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between transformational and transactional leadership, and labour flexibility within small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Using a sample comprising 755 employees, rating 121 supervisors within 50 Dutch small and medium-sized companies, the authors examined the relationship between transformational and transactional leadership on the one hand, and temporal and functional flexibility on the other. Further, to test whether the expected associations could be perceived as a social exchange between supervisor and employees, this study investigated the mediating role of affective organisational commitment.
Design/methodology/approach – Because data were nested, the authors used multilevel analysis for hypothesis testing.
Findings – Both dimensions of transformational leadership, visionary leadership and coaching, were positively related to temporal flexibility; also two dimensions of transactional leadership, contingent reward and active management by exception, were also positively associated with temporal flexibility. All of these associations were mediated by affective organisational commitment, indicating social exchange relationships. As opposed to expectations, passive management by exception, representing poor transactional leadership, was positively related to temporal and functional flexibility. Affective commitment did not mediate these relationships.
Practical implications – SMEs are therefore advised to improve visionary leadership, coaching skills, contingent reward, and active management by exception.
Originality/value – The paper shows that, remarkably, labour flexibility can be increased by both effective and poor leadership. On the one hand, effective leadership seems to promote temporal flexibility by creating employees’ commitment to the organisation. Poor leadership, on the other hand, does not call for people's affective commitment and thus seems to be forcing employees into demonstrating flexible behaviours, as a way of compensating for bad management
TL;DR: This paper explored the labour market experiences of highly skilled migrants from developed countries who are not linguistic or visible minorities in the host country and found positive experiences such as better responsibility, treatment and salary, while others cited negative experiences, such as having to re-accredit, unduly proving themselves to their employers and not having their international experience recognised.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the labour market experiences of highly skilled migrants from developed countries who are not linguistic or visible minorities in the host country.Design/methodology/approach – The results of the paper derive from interviews with 64 highly skilled British migrants in Vancouver. Participants were asked open‐end and closed‐ended questions and the data from the interviews were coded and analysed manually.Findings – British migrants were divided with their labour market outcomes. Some cited positive experiences such as better responsibility, treatment and salary, while others cited negative experiences such as having to re‐accredit, unduly proving themselves to their employers and not having their international experience recognised.Research limitations/implications – The results are particular to a single case study, hence they cannot be generalised or taken to represent the experiences of all British skilled migrants in Vancouver.Practical implications – Gov...
TL;DR: In this paper, the main principles of scientific management are compared with the theory of knowledge work in an attempt to understand their relationship and find that despite the need for workers to retain knowledge, scientific management can still be applied.
Abstract: Purpose – The knowledge economy and the knowledge work that fuels it have created much debate in relation to the types of workers it requires and how they should be managed. The central issue is that “knowledge workers” are only valuable while possessing a body of knowledge to utilise in the process of their work. The management of workers with knowledge runs counter to the more mainstream Taylorist systems based on the assimilation of knowledge into the organisation. The purpose of this paper is to theoretically analyse the usefulness of Scientific Management as a management system for controlling knowledge work.Design/methodology/approach – Through a review of relevant literature this paper compares the main principles of scientific management with the theory of knowledge work in an attempt to understand their relationship.Findings – This paper finds that: despite the need for workers to retain knowledge the main principles of scientific management can still be applied; and the application of Scientific...
TL;DR: The authors conducted a cross-sectional field study of 142 supervisors and found that prosocial voice is increased by supervisor tension and trust in employees, while defensive silence is reduced by unionization of employees.
Abstract: Purpose - It is ironic that in stressful economic times, when new ideas and positive behaviors could be most valuable, employees may not speak up, leading to reduced employee participation, less organizational learning, less innovation and less receptiveness to change. The supervisor is the organization’s first line of defense against a culture of silence and towards a culture of openness. This research asks what helps supervisors to hear prosocial voice and notice defensive silence. Design/methodology/approach - We conducted a cross-sectional field study of 142 supervisors. Findings - Our results indicate that prosocial voice is increased by supervisor tension and trust in employees, while defensive silence is increased by supervisor tension but reduced by unionization of employees and trust in employees. This indicates that, as hypothesized by others, voice and silence are orthogonal and not opposites of the same construct. Research limitations/implications - The data is measured at one point in time, and further longitudinal study would be helpful to further understand the phenomena. Practical implications - This research highlights the potential for supervisors in stressful situations to selectively hear voice and silence from employees. Originality/value - This study adds to our knowledge of prosocial voice and defensive silence by testing supervisors’ perceptions of these constructs during difficult times. It provides valuable empirical insights to a literature dominated by conceptual non-empirical papers. Limited research on silence might reflect how difficult it is to study such an ambiguous and passive construct as silence (often simply viewed as a lack of speech). also contribute to trust literature by identifying its role in increasing supervisor’s perceptions of prosocial voice and reducing perceptions of defensive silence.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors introduce the elements characterising the work context of high responsibility teams (HRTs) operating in high reliability contexts such as medicine or aviation, and reflect on the function of teamwork in these contexts, which is strongly dominated by a notion of flexibility under complexity.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of the present study is to introduce the elements characterising the work context of high responsibility teams (HRTs) operating in high reliability contexts such as medicine or aviation. Based on these elements, the authors reflected on the function of teamwork in these contexts, which is strongly dominated by a notion of flexibility under complexity, based on the technical, normative, and governance dimensions of teamwork.Design/methodology/approach – Problem‐centred interviews (n=11) based on semi‐structured guidelines were conducted. Subsequently, a survey was conducted using a questionnaire inventory in six different HRT work contexts (n=551).Findings – The interviews and survey results show significant differences regarding, for example, hierarchy or stress posed on the HRTs. However, they also demonstrate relevant similarities regarding, for instance, dimensions of complexity occurring in the teamwork contexts. Both differences and similarities influence how the support systems...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors introduce the special issue by problematising labour agency, precariousness, and labour fragmentation as defining themes of the interplay between employment relations, migration and mobility.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to introduce the special issue by problematising labour agency, precariousness, and labour fragmentation as defining themes of the interplay between employment relations, migration and mobility.Design/methodology/approach – Drawing from discussions about the impact of globalisation on changes in features of work and employment, and bringing together theory and research on employment relations and labour migration, the paper discusses the relational spatial and temporal nature of agency, the diverse features of worker experiences of precariousness, and the resulting fragmentation in labour solidarity.Findings – Labour agency, precariousness and labour fragmentation intersect to create the axis of dynamics of hardship and abuse that dominate work experiences of migrant workers in the global labour market. Globalisation has a pervasive impact in articulating and perpetuating systemic processes of closure, entrapment and containment, which are triggered by migration and ...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors provide an insight into the perspectives and possibilities of implementing the performance-related pay in the Estonian general educational schools and test two propositions regarding factors that influence school performance and teachers' and school managers' opinions about performance management.
Abstract: Purpose – The article aims to provide an insight into the perspectives and possibilities of implementing the performance‐related pay in the Estonian general educational schools. It also aims to test two propositions regarding factors that influence school performance and teachers' and school managers' opinions about performance management.Design/methodology/approach – A total of 298 school managers and 2,165 teachers from general educational schools in Estonia participated in the study. The factor, regression and correlation analysis, independent samples t‐test and one‐way ANOVA analysis were used to study claims related to school management and performance and educational processes.Findings – The results of the analysis show that besides teachers' activities and effectiveness factors, various school management factors play an important role in the shaping of the school performance and the opinions towards the implementation of performance appraisal and performance‐related pay.Research limitations and imp...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated the influence of hybrid knowledge management in workers' productivity and tolerance of ambiguity, before and after the implementation of the Communication and Knowledge Motivator (CKM) model.
Abstract: Purpose – The aim of this research is to investigate the influence of hybrid knowledge management in workers' productivity and tolerance of ambiguity.Design/methodology/approach – The research was conducted before and after the implementation of the Communication and Knowledge Motivator (CKM) model in Hellenic Railways Organization (2004 and 2008). Survey data were collected from 352 workers. In the first phase (2004), workers' productivity, ambiguity tolerance and demographical characteristics were examined. In the second phase (2008), the same measurements were performed. Ordinary regressions (enter and stepwise) were used to explore the research hypotheses.Findings – The paper finds that workers' productivity and tolerance of ambiguity is positively affected by the CKM model. Further, it confirms the significant influence of workers' ambiguity tolerance in their productivity, before and after the implementation of the CKM model.Research limitations/implications – Workers' productivity might be influenc...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors focus on the development of a health and safety representative role typology that demonstrates how representatives enact their roles and improve occupational health safety (OHS) under New Zealand law.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to focus on the development of a health and safety (HS) representative role typology that demonstrates how representatives enact their roles and improve occupational health and safety (OHS) under New Zealand law. It aims to consider the factors that influence the roles that HS representatives’ assume.Design/methodology/approach – This qualitative, cross‐perceptual study centres on the role enactments of eight HS representatives at two metal manufacturers. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with HS representatives, managers, workers, senior managers, OHS managers and a union convenor. “Types” were differentiated by the HS representatives’ purpose, activities and OHS impacts.Findings – In total, four HS representative role “types” were identified: administrators, workshop inspectors, problem solvers and craft experts. Administrators implemented and operated OHS management systems and improved OHS management. Workshop inspectors undertook compliance and monitorin...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated whether a change in staffing contractual arrangements, specific training in hazard identification, mentoring of supervisors and the introduction of a robust safety system could improve an organisation's safety culture.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether a change in staffing contractual arrangements, specific training in hazard identification, mentoring of supervisors and the introduction of a robust safety system could improve an organisation's safety culture. How safety conditions change under contracted out labour compared to direct labour and the influence that contracting out has on organisational safety culture is explored.Design/methodology/approach – The study used a case study methodology to detail how the change occurred over a six month period in 2011. As part of the analysis a model of the change process and push‐pull factors is offered.Findings – As a result of the change, all areas saw some improvement. Work‐related injury statistics dropped significantly, supervisors were clear of their roles, actively monitoring their crews to ensure they worked in a safer manner than before, and staff were actively addressing work‐place hazards. With the safety system in place the organisation ...
TL;DR: The authors explored how immigrants and their descendants developed re-emigration strategies in their first country of settlement in Europe when faced with structural or conjunctural barriers to the advancement of their socioeconomic situation.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to challenge the idea of the immobile immigrant worker, trapped in the bottom segments of the labour market, by exploring how immigrants and their descendants (sometimes designated second generation immigrants) develop re‐emigration strategies in their first country of settlement in Europe when faced with structural or conjunctural barriers to the advancement of their socio‐economic situation.Design/methodology/approach – Empirical evidence was collected through structured interviews aimed at capturing labour market and residential trajectories of workers of African origin and their descendants in Portugal, with a particular emphasis on the period between 1998 and 2006.Findings – Findings suggest that in some cases, immigrants draw on social networks available to them to engage in processes of continued intra‐European mobility. International re‐emigration emerges as a work‐space mobility strategy for migrant workers and their descendants when there was no significant...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors analyse the role of employers as "institutional" factors in the creation of segmentation in the labour market, focusing on the sectors of catering, cleaning and security as low-skilled service sector providers.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse the role of employers as “institutional” factors in the creation of segmentation in the labour market. Industrial structure defines segments of the labour market (the employer) based on the nature of demand, and with the impact on the individual workers or groups based on their personal characteristics.Design/methodology/approach – Empirical work is within the Dublin labour market, which experienced the largest increase in availability of migrant workers under immigration policies of the Celtic Tiger state. Focused on the sectors of catering, cleaning and security as low‐skilled service sector providers, the analysis is based on 24 semi‐structured interviews with employers selected based on a database of a cross‐section of all employers in the selected sectors in Dublin.Findings – Semi‐structured interviews reinforce state policies as key institutional factor underlying migrant labour trends and experiences, but perspectives of the employers in low‐end ser...
Abstract: Purpose – Referring to the sociology of conventions, the purpose of this paper is to examine how various conventions of work coordination and employee relations affect how recruiters in the domestic labour industry use ethnic categories to match jobs to applicants in the domestic services sector and how institutional gatekeepers relegate immigrant women to jobs with poor career opportunities.Design/methodology/approach – Case studies of a public job centre, a domestic service provider and an occupational integration service show the core conventions structuring job placement in Marseille's domestic service industry. Based on nine semi‐structured interviews with representatives of the three respective intermediaries, the authors reconstructed conventions and compromises between them related to the use of ethnic categories as significant criteria in recruitment.Findings – Characteristic compromises of work conventions frame the organisational use of ethnic categories in the job placement process. Market and...
TL;DR: This article examined the interplay of structure and agency dynamics in strike activity by investigating the 2007 36-hour strike undertaken by 2,300 engineering and infrastructure workers employed by the private consortium Metronet on the London Underground, focusing attention on the relationship between workers' militancy, trade union leadership and left-wing politics.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to build on the insights of mobilisation theory to examine the interplay of structure and agency dynamics in strike activity. It proposes to do so by investigating the 2007 36‐hour strike undertaken by 2,300 engineering and infrastructure workers employed by the private consortium Metronet on the London Underground, focusing attention on the relationship between workers’ militancy, trade union leadership and left‐wing politics within a highly distinctive and union favourable “opportunity structure” context.Design/methodology/approach – Semi‐structured in‐depth interviews were conducted with 24 RMT union informants within Metronet and the London Underground (including union members, reps, branch and regional officers); analysis was made of documentary industrial relations and trade union material; and personal fieldwork observation.Findings – Although favourable specific contextual and contingent factors served as both provocations and resources for strike action, not...
TL;DR: In this paper, the impact of globalisation and productive restructuring in contemporary migration flows in Latin America has been analyzed, focusing on Bolivian workers in Sao Paulo and Brazilians in London, seeking to highlight the precarious work conditions of migrants from the region.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to reflect on the impact of globalisation and productive restructuring in contemporary migration flows in Latin America. It analyses two different movements to/from Latin America: Bolivians in Sao Paulo and Brazilians in London, seeking to highlight the precarious work conditions of migrants from the region.Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses two interrelated research projects. One focuses on Bolivian workers in Sao Paulo. It used reference documents, and files from the local press and academic articles to map work dynamics of Bolivian migrants working in sweatshops. The other was conducted in London, where in‐depth interviews and participant observations were conducted with Brazilians working in low‐skilled jobs, to explore motives behind migration and settlement.Findings – There is increasing mobility between different countries that receive immigrants with flexible proposals about constructing “new life projects”. These migrants seek to escape unfavourabl...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigated the relationship between perceived employee influence and organizational commitment by applying a multidimensional approach that includes influence perceived to stem from the individual and the team, as well as affective and normative commitment.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this study is to elucidate the relationship between perceived employee influence and organizational commitment by applying a multidimensional approach that includes influence perceived to stem from the individual and the team, as well as affective and normative commitment.Design/methodology/approach – A total of 526 out of a population of 732 employees (72 percent reply rate) from four Danish companies in different industries and with different types of teams participated in the questionnaire study.Findings – Results of bootstrapping mediation analyses reveal that a relationship between perceived influence of the team and affective commitment is fully mediated by perceived individual influence. Results of multiple regression analyses show a positive relationship between team and individual influence, and that normative commitment moderated the relationship negatively. The results are to suggest that influence of the team may stimulate employees’ individual influence, and in turn t...
TL;DR: The authors explored control and resistance in the UK further education (FE) sector by examining senior college managers' attempts to engineer culture change and analysing lecturers' resistance to such measures.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore control and resistance in the UK further education (FE) sector by examining senior college managers’ attempts to engineer culture change and analysing lecturers’ resistance to such measures.Design/methodology/approach – Data were derived from interviews with managers and lecturers in two English FE colleges and the analysis of college documents. Interview data were analysed thematically using NVIVO software.Findings – It was found that college managers sought to build consent to change among lecturers based on values derived from “business‐like” views. Culture change initiatives were framed within the language of empowerment but lecturers’ experiences of change led them to feel disempowered and cynical as managers imposed their view of what lecturers should be doing and how they should behave. This attempt to gain control of the lecturers’ labour process invoked the “Stepford” lecturer metaphor used in the paper. Paradoxically, as managers sought to create...