Firm Employment Research Articles

Continuous work-related sitting time and its association with perceived workplace support for health among workers in the Greater Accra Municipality: a cross-sectional analysis with sensitivity analyses

BackgroundResearch to date has shown that work-related sitting time can be a major occupational health risk. This understanding has encouraged several workplace health promotion efforts. Even so, some domains of work-related sitting time and their associations with Perceived Workplace Support for Health (PWSH) have not been considered in research. This study aims to compare domains of work-related sitting time between employee characteristics (e.g., gender and age) and assess their associations with PWSH.MethodsThis study adopted a cross-sectional design with a sensitivity analysis against confounding and measures against common methods bias. The study population was employees of private and public firms in Accra, Ghana. In all, 1000 employees participated in the study. The hierarchical linear regression analysis and the independent samples t-test were used to present the results.ResultsEmployees working in service firms, compared with those working in manufacturing firms, reported longer sitting time for lunchtime. After adjusting for physical function, we found a negative association between PWSH and the sum of continuous sitting time as well as its domains (p < 0.001), except for ‘sitting with a desk’ (p > 0.05).ConclusionWork-related sitting time was associated with employee characteristics and was lower at higher PWSH. This study reinforces the importance of workplace support for health and its role in work-related sitting.

Using benevolent leadership to improve safety behaviour in the construction industry: a moderated mediation model of safety knowledge and safety training and education

Objectives. Despite extensive regulatory reform, safety research and safety programmes over the past several decades, the construction sector remains notoriously dangerous in different regions across the world. Despite the fact that effective leadership is crucial for improving workplace safety behaviour (SB), there have been insufficient studies on how benevolent leadership (BL) affects such behaviour. Methods. Using a cross-sectional design, this research examines the influence of BL on employees’ SB. The mediating role of safety knowledge and the moderating role of safety training and education were also observed. Data obtained from 413 employees of construction firms in Turkey were used to verify the links. Results. BL has positive influences on employees’ SB and safety knowledge. Safety knowledge has a positive influence on SB and partially mediates the BL–SB link. At a low level of safety training and education, the BL–safety knowledge link is weaker for firms whose employees receive low safety training and education. At high levels of safety training and education, both the direct and indirect links between BL and SB are stronger for firms with high levels of safety training and education. Conclusion. The findings significantly extend safety literature through the lens of implicit followership theory.

Knowledge hiding, emotional exhaustion and job performance: the role of psychological resilience

Purpose As an emerging novelty, knowledge hiding has received considerable attention in management literature. Drawing on conversation of resources theory, this study aims to investigate how knowledge hiding impacts job performance among employees through the mediating role of emotional exhaustion. This work further offers deeper insight into the moderating mechanism of psychological resilience in these relationships. Design/methodology/approach Three time-lagged sets of data (N = 362) were collected among employees in Vietnamese firms. The partial least squares structural equation modeling method was applied to test the research hypotheses. Findings Empirical findings indicate that knowledge hiding positively impacts emotional exhaustion. Furthermore, emotional exhaustion serves a mediating role in the link between knowledge hiding and job performance. The results also show how psychological resilience moderates the relations between knowledge hiding, emotional exhaustion and job performance. Practical implications The findings suggest that managers can reduce the harms of knowledge-hiding behaviors by enriching employees’ resources and bolstering their psychological resilience. Originality/value This inquiry explores the mechanism linking knowledge-hiding behaviors and job performance through the mediator of emotional exhaustion. In addition, this study extends the current knowledge by investigating the moderating role of psychological resilience in the relations between knowledge-hiding, emotional exhaustion and job performance.

How Digital Transformational Leadership Promotes Digital Creativity: A Dual-path Mediation Model

This study explores the dual-path mechanisms for the influence of digital transformational leadership on employees’ digital creativity. A questionnaire survey of 300 knowledge-based employees in several Chinese firms was conducted, and 219 valid questionnaires were obtained. We conducted structural equation modeling using Mplus to analyze our data. The results show that digital transformational leadership has a significant positive effect on digital creativity. Openness to change and change self-efficacy mediates the relationship between digital transformational leadership and digital creativity. Importantly, openness to change and change self-efficacy play a chain mediating role in the effect of digital transformational leadership on digital creativity—that is, digital transformational leadership increases their openness to change and change self-efficacy, which in turn contributes to their digital creativity. By enriching research in the field of creativity, this study is also instructive for guiding and promoting employees’ digital creativity.

Developing employee proactivity in entrepreneurial ventures through training: an organisational identity approach

Purpose This study aims to explore how training influences employee proactive behaviours in entrepreneurial ventures. Specifically, the study develops and tests a model in which organisational identification (OID) mediates the relationship between perceptions of training and two employee proactive behaviours: taking charge and creative behaviour. Design/methodology/approach Data was collected from 136 employee-supervisor dyads from 24 entrepreneurial ventures in Malaysia’s high technology industry. Smart–partial least square structural equations modelling was used to test our proposed hypothesis. Findings The findings suggest that entrepreneurial ventures can use training to strengthen employees’ identification with the ventures, which in turn encourages proactive behaviours. Originality/value This study shows how HRD practices found in larger firms can work in different ways to influence desirable behaviours among employees of entrepreneurial firms. Specifically, by demonstrating how the relationship between training and employee proactive behaviours occurs through OID in the context of entrepreneurial ventures, the authors provide a complementary explanation of how HRD practices in entrepreneurial ventures can influence employee positive behaviours.

From knowledge to profit: business reputation as a mediator in the impact of green intellectual capital on business performance

PurposeThe purpose of this research is to support the green movement and improve corporate performance by focusing on green intellectual capital and its various components (e.g. green human capital, green structural capital and green relational capital). Furthermore, this study looks into the impact of business reputation in mediating the link between green intellectual capital qualities and business performance.Design/methodology/approachTo obtain data from the target population, this study employed quantitative techniques and a survey approach for data collection from respondents (managers and employees) of firms. The final sample size was 255.FindingsAccording to structural equation modeling green human capital, green structural capital and green relational capital all have a positive and statistically significant impact on organizational performance. Furthermore, the study shows that a company’s reputation plays an important role in mediating the relationship between the green intellectual capital component and business performance. These findings are confirmed by the natural resource-based perspective theory. This shows that developing green intellectual capital and promoting a green environment increases a company’s reputation among stakeholders, which promotes organizational performance.Research limitations/implicationsThe study’s findings will help policymakers and administrators better understand the role of green intellectual capital in business reputation and performance. Based on empirical data, the study would contribute to the management, environmental science and performance literature.Originality/valueTo the best of the researcher's knowledge, this is the first study to apply the natural resource-based view theory and to consider corporate reputation as a mediator between green intellectual capital and business success.

New Evidence of the Impact of Innovative Capacity on Firm Employment

The business behavior towards innovation and its impact on the creation of new jobs of 113 firms in the Valencian Community (Spain) were analyzed between 2014 and 2020. The sample included manufacturing, services and trading enterprises; technological and non-technological companies; micro-, small, medium, and large enterprises; and locations across the entire geographical extent of the Valencian Community. The firms were divided into quartiles based on their level of employment growth, linearly correlating this variable with 14 innovation indicators for each of the resulting four groups, reflecting the innovative capacity of these firms. It was found that the factor linked to innovation capacity that most favors or drives business employment creation is co-operation with other companies, as it had a direct and significant relationship with the two highest growth groups (quartiles 4 and 3), with no negative relationship with either of the two lower growth groups (quartiles 2 and 1). This suggests that the public administration should increase efforts to create spaces for the exchange of ideas between companies and organizations to reduce unemployment levels. Overall, this study provides new insights into the subject, and its findings lead to the conclusion that firms with higher innovative capacity create more jobs.

Examining the role of virtual teams on project management processes in the Nigerian fintech sector

This study examined the role of virtual teams on project management processes in the Nigerian fintech industry. To achieve this aim, the study sought to examine how communication technology utilisation, trust, and geographical distribution of team members affected the project management processes of virtual team members in the Nigerian fintech industry. Building upon the theoretical frameworks of social presence theory and transaction cost theory, the study adopted a quantitative approach and used a sample of 385 employees of fintech firms in Nigeria. Using an electronic close-ended questionnaire (Google forms), data were collected from 378 participants, indicating a response rate of 98.2%. Purposive sampling technique was used to select the study’s participants. Data were analysed using both descriptive (frequencies and percentages) and inferential statistics (multiple linear regression) via the aid of STATA 17. Findings from the study revealed that communication technology utilization (β = 0.3114694, p &lt; 0.05) and geographical distribution of team members (β =0.7622249, p &lt; 0.05) both had statistically significant effects on project management processes. Trust was found to have an insignificant effect on project management processes (β = -0.0085031, p &gt; 0.798). The study concluded that virtual teams significantly and positively affects project management processes in the Nigerian fintech industry, and recommends that firms in the industry should continue with the use of virtual teams in their given projects. Also, the study recommends that policies regarding work in the virtual environment should be formalised so as to maximise the benefits associated with virtual work.

Effects of SUDENE’s tax incentives on job creation in the Northeast region of Brazil

ABSTRACT This paper analyzes the effects of tax incentives on job creation by companies located in the Northeast region of Brazil, disaggregated by sector. The generalized synthetic control method is employed to handle this problem. The evidence indicates that the incentives have beneficial effects on increasing firm employment. Specifically, we observed positive impacts in the labour-intensive manufacturing sector. Therefore, the results provide positive evidence for using tax incentives for regional development, although the effects are concentrated in the manufacturing sector.

The effect of toxic leadership on tourism and hotel firm employee performance: The mediating role of job frustration

The effect of toxic leadership on tourism and hotel firm employee performance: The mediating role of job frustration

The Shock of US-China trade war and the job Market: Downstream shrinkage and upstream employment

Using the 2018 US-China trade war as a quasi-natural experiment, we investigate how downstream shrinkage affects upstream employment. Utilizing a difference-in-differences (DID) approach, we reveal a negative effect of downstream shrinkage on upstream firm employment. Our mechanism analysis indicates that trade wars increase the tax burden, inventories, and accounts payable for downstream firms while reducing their employment. This shrinkage of downstream firms limits the scale of investment and operations for upstream firms through supply chain transmission, thereby decreasing employment of upstream firms. Moreover, our finding is more pronounced for specific types of firms, such as non-state-owned firms, firms operating across multiple industries. Our study provides an essential reference for firms in building resilient supply chain networks to better cope with potential negative shocks.

How industrial robots affect employment: firm-level evidence from China

Using China’s Annual Survey of Industrial Firms (ASIF) and the China Customs Database (CCD) from 2000 to 2013, this study explores the impact of adopting industrial robots on the employment in Chinese manufacturing firms. We find a positive association between the adoption of industrial robots and the employment scale of China’s manufacturing enterprises. We also find evidence that the positive association is more pronounced in capital-intensive industries, non-state-owned firms, and firms in coastal areas. Mechanism test indicates that ‘scale expansion effects’ and ‘productivity effects’ are the main channels through which industrial robots promote employment growth. Further analysis indicates that the adoption of industrial robots did not have obvious industry spillover effects. Additionally, other labor market results demonstrate that the adoption of industrial robots significantly increases the average wage level of enterprises while decreasing their labor share. This study provides micro-level evidence revealing the impact of adopting industrial robots on employment in developing countries. It also provides important policy implications for countries worldwide seeking to promote automated production.

Does government regulations protecting employee privacy hurt employment? The Impact of Salary History Bans on Employment

There is a long-standing debate over the merits of confidential and transparent pay. Yet, as some states and counties in the U.S. have implemented policies that prohibit employers from asking about historical pay, many top tech companies such as Apple have introduced corresponding policies. In particular, this paper examines whether they have impacted employment. In this paper, we use the implementation of the salary history ban as a ”quasi-natural experiment” to assess the impact of the policy on employment using a staggered difference-in-differences method based on county-level panel data from 2013 to 2021. The study shows that the salary history ban does not significantly contribute to the increase in employment levels in general; even the implementation of the salary history ban reduces employment in local firms by an average of 1.04% relative to firms in areas where the policy is not implemented. This paper provides new empirical evidence on the effects of salary history bans and provides a reference for further improvements in corporate payroll management systems in practice.

EXPLORING INSTITUTIONAL INVESTORS’ DETERMINANTS OF INVESTMENT IN AFFORDABLE HOUSING FUND

This study attempts to explore factors that may attract institutional investors to invest in affordable housing funds in Malaysia. Six traits of investments were tested, namely fund structure and mandate, market return, social return, risk mitigation, governance and transparency, and government support for the investment. Based on the six determinants, the study uses a partial least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) technique using data gathered from a survey involving employees of institutional investment firms in Malaysia. The study found three significant factors motivating institutional investors to invest in affordable housing fund, namely social return, government support, and governance and transparency. Overall, it was found that institutional investors do greatly consider social elements in their investment decisions. This will potentially open new avenues in fundraising efforts to build more affordable housing, hence providing an adequate supply of these homes for those in need.

Examining the moderating role of organizational emotional culture on the relationship between leader emotional intelligence and employee job performance in South Africa’s additive manufacturing industry

South Africa’s additive manufacturing research has mostly concentrated on engineering and technical aspects, with a lack of studies on management and organizational dynamics. To fill this gap, we conducted research on the direct and moderating links between leader emotional intelligence, organizational emotional culture, and employee job performance in South African additive manufacturing enterprises. We used a deductive research approach, a quantitative research method, and a cross-sectional explanatory correlational study design. Our study used simple random sampling to select 148 employees of additive manufacturing firms in South Africa. Questionnaires served as the data collection instruments, and online data gathering was done using Google Forms. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26 software was used for data coding, data entry, and descriptive statistics. Smart PLS 4 was used to conduct partial Least Squares (PLS) Structural Equation Modelling. Findings of the study demonstrate that a significant positive relationship exists between leader emotional intelligence and employee job performance. A significant positive relationship also exists between leader emotional intelligence and organizational emotional climate. A significant positive relationship was found to exist between organizational emotional culture and employee job performance. The finding also showed that organizational emotional culture moderates the relationship between leader emotional intelligence and employee job performance. The findings suggest that developing emotional intelligence among leaders in South African additive manufacturing enterprises could enhance both staff productivity and the organizational emotional environment. Our findings highlight the importance of prioritizing leader emotional intelligence training and development for additive manufacturing enterprises in creating a good emotional environment conducive to enhanced staff job performance.

Do Firm Profits Adversely Impact Wage Growth and Employment Generation: Evidence from Firm-Level Data in India

With growth in the economy examining how much of the increase in net profit margins of firms translates into growth in wages and employment is useful for gaining insights on local income equalities. Using the firm data for the period 2011–2021, this study probes the trend of growth in wage cost and employment in firms belonging to different sectors in India. As the data collected vividly depicts inequality in wages and employment provided by firms in different sectors of the economy, a panel data analysis is done for different sectors of the Indian economy. The study finds evidence of inequality in the transfer of firm profits into wage and employment growth despite sectoral revenue and ownership status positively affecting wage growth as well as negative association of employment growth with private ownership. The findings of this study have policy implications for both firms and policymakers in both emerging economies as well as developed countries.

Wait or pivot? Family and non-family firms’ strategic responses to COVID-19 and employment change

The aim of this paper is to investigate the effects of different strategic behaviors adopted during COVID-19 pandemic on employment change (a percentage change in the number of employees) in both family and non-family firms. We use an international survey-based dataset of 2,192 family and non-family firms. We provide evidence that a pivoting strategy (transforming the business) could prevent layoffs. Finally, while transparent leadership communication positively moderates the effect of pivoting on employment change in non-family firms it shows an opposite effect in family firms.

Knowledge arbitrage: what are the risks, and do they matter?

PurposeIt is largely acknowledged that arbitrating the flow of knowledge can help firms strategically leverage tacit and explicit internal knowledge. However, despite the apparent scholarly and managerial acceptance of the criticality of the flow of knowledge between various stakeholders, the academic understanding of knowledge arbitrage remains coarse-grained. There are practically no empirical insights available to unravel the consequences of firms’ knowledge arbitrage choices regarding rewards and risks. This study aims to identify the risks that emerge as firms channel the flow of knowledge from surplus to deficit areas within organizational boundaries. To this end, the authors investigate several subsumed subprocesses in knowledge arbitrage to map the associated risks.Design/methodology/approachThis study used an exploratory qualitative approach to examine the risks that emerge as firms attempt to support knowledge flows within their organizational boundaries. The data were collected through open-ended essays via an online research platform from 45 full-time employees of firms operating in different sectors. The collected data were analyzed inductively through open, axial and selective coding.FindingsThe research findings identified three key subprocesses of knowledge arbitrage: knowledge diffusion, knowledge brokering and knowledge absorption. These subprocesses are susceptible to various risks arising the form of channels, champions, sharers and receivers of knowledge flows. In general, the study showed that a firm’s decision regarding knowledge flows, such as structured or random flows, or the presence or absence of designated coordinators to broker the flow carries specific risks for both sharers and receivers. In particular, while the risks of knowledge hiding, misinformation and disinformation manifest in all three subprocesses, low employee engagement, loss of knowledge and information overload also emerged as key risks in any two of the three subprocesses.Originality/valueThis study offers valuable insights by uncovering the hitherto unexplored risks in intrafirm knowledge arbitrage. Given that knowledge is a crucial organizational tool for driving performance, innovation and competitive advantage, understanding the risks associated with intrafirm arbitrated knowledge flows can help firms anticipate and mitigate the associated adverse consequences. The findings make a novel contribution by offering (a) a comprehensive categorization of the risks associated with knowledge arbitrage rooted in processes, people and structures and (b) a macro overview of knowledge arbitrage risks associated with the processes of knowledge diffusion, knowledge brokering and knowledge absorption.

Organizational citizenship behavior to the environment at medical device firms: the intersection of leadership characteristics, organizational factors and employee behaviors

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to understand the lived experiences of ten (10) product innovation employees in medical device firms’ sustainability initiatives, considering leadership, organizational and employee factors within the healthcare industry.Design/methodology/approachPhenomenology was chosen as it supports an in-depth analysis of the lived experience of several individuals, who are experiencing a similar phenomenon. This methodology permitted the researcher to “view experience and behavior as an integrated and inseparable relationship of the subject and object and of parts and whole.”FindingsThe intersection of employee, leader and organizational factors should be considered to further organizational citizenship behavior to the environment. Within each theme, cognitive dissonance is present. Understanding and acknowledging the choice required by the individual, leader and/or organization may impact overall environmental organizational citizenship behavior.Practical implicationsWhen implementing sustainable activities, three key areas should be evaluated: leaders, organizations and employees.Social implicationsThis study provides insight into employee experiences and sustainable activities.Originality/valueThis research adds to the literature on organizational citizenship behavior to the environment within medical device firms as it provides insight into how sustainability programs within firms could be approached. Healthcare’s climate impact contributes to emissions which are equivalent to having 75 million vehicles on the road, annually. In addition, this study provided an initial understanding of the lived experiences of employees within the medical device industry when themes are analyzed. The results may help organizations understand the experiences of employees to further advance their vision and mission, by understanding the phenomenon of how sustainability initiatives are perceived.

Managing in a Regressive Legal Environment: Employers Need to Stay the Course of Nondiscrimination

Federal law expanded civil rights and equal opportunity to all employees. Major U.S. employers have embraced the expansion by using affirmative action plans and diversity, equity, and inclusion policies. Concerns raised by a more conservative Supreme Court and its reversal of affirmative action in higher education, the recent enactment of regressive state laws aimed to diminish the rights of the LGBTQ+ community and invalidate affirmative action and DEI efforts should not be allowed to discourage the progress made. Employers can and should stay the course of expanded civil rights and equal opportunity in the workplace for all firm employees.