Do HRM systems impose restrictions on employee quality of life? Evidence from a sustainable HRM perspective

Abstract

Sustainable human resource management (HRM) as an emerging discipline facilitates businesses to improve employees’ quality of life to achieve a social sustainability outcome. A moderated-mediation study using data from large organizations in India attempts to establish that bundles of motivation enhancing practices of an HRM system used to improve organizational performance increase the health harm of work among employees. The health harm of work is about the restrictions imposed by work on employees to improve quality of life and it is different from work stress and strain. It is demonstrated that perceived organizational support as a mediator reduces the health harm of work imposed by bundles of practices of an HRM system. However, there is limited evidence to support that employee level exchange ideology moderates the relationship between perceived organizational support and the health harm of work. Theoretical contributions and future research directions to promote sustainable HRM system are discussed.