Abstract
This article examines the role of employee representatives, who support HRM in positioning itself and the organization as “socially responsible”. Based on a constructivist understanding of organizational communication, employee representatives are examined as previously unrecognized entities that are responsible—and also essential—for guaranteeing a good working life, which also originates through communication. The article provides an overview of existing studies on employee representatives and their positions in companies and tries to bridge the gaps among organizational communication, CSR communication, and management theory by redesigning the role of employee representatives—who have received limited academic attention to date—as communicators. The insights from an international comparative study confirm that employee representatives perceive themselves not only as a “grief box” or “control body” of management, but also as a responsible agent and “medium” for the realization of social and communicative sustainability. This not only opens up new research perspectives, but also highlights the need to conceptually deal and theoretically discuss employee representatives and their roles in internal communication processes from the perspectives of organizational communication, HRM, CSR, and sustainability.
Highlights
It has always been the task of companies to set and meet basic human needs
Based on a constructivist understanding of organizational communication, employee representatives are examined as previously unrecognized entities that are responsible—and essential—for guaranteeing a good working life, which originates through communication
Regarding their self-perception, the present study found support for various roles that employee representatives are claimed to occupy, with most of them being almost identical to the ones identified in the literature
Summary
Organizations contribute to social welfare and individual wellbeing by serving as enablers of the “good life”—both socially and economically, especially in relation to the corporate environment. Goal 8 is concerned with ensuring decent work and economic growth, with Targets 8.3 and 8.8 highlighting the need to promote “decent job conditions” and “safe and secure working environments for all workers”, respectively [1]. In recognizing employees as core organizational assets—a reasoning that is in line with a resource-based organizational view [2]—investing in employee wellbeing is closely linked to organizational CSR activities, which are used to enhance corporate reputation, build legitimacy, and increase organizational performance in the long run [3,4]. As CSR is concerned with contributing to social welfare, it encompasses an organization’s contribution to employee welfare and wellbeing [5]
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