Constructing an index for comparing human resources management sustainability in Europe

• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/1748-8583.12286
• Author: Macarena López‐Fernández,Rosalia Diaz‐Carrion,Pedro M. Romero‐Fernandez
• Date: 01 January 2021
• Published date: 01 January 2021

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Constructing an index for comparing human

resources management sustainability in Europe

Rosalia Diaz-Carrion

1

| Macarena López-Fernández

2

|

Pedro M. Romero-Fernandez

2

1

Tourism and Finance Faculty, The University

of Seville, Seville, Spain

2

Economics and Business Faculty, The

University of Cadiz, Cadiz, Spain

Correspondence

Rosalia Diaz-Carrion, Tourism and Finance

Faculty, The University of Seville, San

Francisco Javier s/n 41018, Seville, Spain.

Email: rosaliadiaz@us.es

Funding information

Agencia de Innovación y Desarrollo de

Andalucía, Grant/Award Number: P12-SEJ-

1618; Consejería de Economía, Innovación,

Ciencia y Empleo, Junta de Andalucía

Abstract

Assuming that a company's institutional context influences

its sustainability approach and its human resources manage-

ment (HRM), this article compares firms' sustainable HRM

systems across countries. Despite the presence of a supra-

national government, different social models exist in Europe

according to the level of social protection in each country.

The article compares the engagement of companies with

sustainable HRM across Europe and develops an index with

which to compare HRM sustainability in countries that pre-

sent significant institutional differences: Germany, Spain,

Sweden, and the United Kingdom. The index is constructed

based on a formative measurement model, which reflects

the implementation levels of sustainable HRM in 106 west-

ern European firms. The index reveals significant differ-

ences between companies from the four countries and

between liberal and coordinated market economies, indicat-

ing the need to address the impact of the national institu-

tional context on firms' HRM sustainability.

KEYWORDS

corporate social responsibility dimensions, cross-country analysis,

Europe, HRM sustainability index, institutional theory

1|INTRODUCTION

Growing societal demands for responsible business behavior pressures companies to adopt a balanced approach to

managing the demands of the different stakeholders to create economic, environmental, and societal value (Ren &

Jackson, 2019). Due to the prominence of sustainable development issues that provoke a global mainstream of

Received: 16 January 2019 Revised: 13 December 2019 Accepted: 3 February 2020

DOI: 10.1111/1748-8583.12286

120 © 2020 John Wiley & Sons Ltd Hum Resour Manag J. 2021;31:120–142.wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/hrmj

public consciousness regarding sustainability, it has become imperative for firms (Rezaee, 2017). The labor abuses

that are being publicized emphasize the importance of developing more sustainable human resources management

(HRM) models.

As established in the literature about HRM based on a contingent approach, the management of people isa con-

cept much wider than the development, only and exclusively, of an HRM system (Alcázar, Fernández, & Gardey,

2005; Wright, Snell, & Dyer, 2005). Contributing to sustainability from HRM involves more than making a statement

of principles, or implementing occasional philanthropic activities, which are not connected to the company's strategy.

According to Kramer and Porter (2006), this neither helps the survival of the company nor benefits wider society.

The inclusion of sustainability in the planning and implementation of the company's strategy is essential. Therefore,

opportunities for HRM scholars and professionals arise to contribute to the pursuit of sustainability (Ren & Jackson,

2019) and to the understanding of the strategic process (between the HRM system and the company strategy),

which is influenced by the organization's level of commitment to sustainability.

Given the important role that employees play in the success or failure of an organization, a strategy that priori-

tizes their well-being and satisfaction is likely to have a positive impact on the ability of the firm to meet its objec-

tives (Kramar, 2014). That is why the degree of commitment that a company has to sustainability becomes a key

dimension of the company's strategy and of strategic HRM. Policies and practices that seek to improve the quality of

life of employees not only foster their motivation and commitment to the organization but are also socially accepted.

A greater degree of commitment to sustainability may provide advantages in terms of legitimacy, in addition to an

adequate competitive position thanks to the improvement of employee performance (Jackson & Seo, 2010). Hence,

sustainable and strategic HRM has very important links (Baumgartner & Rauter, 2017). As pointed by Kramar (2014),

although aspects of strategic HRM are integrated into sustainable HRM, the latter represents a novel approach to

Practitioner notes

What is currently known about sustainable HRM?

•The link between sustainable HRM and organizational performance.

•The influence of sustainable HRM on employees’satisfaction and commitment.

•How economic, human, and social value can be created through sustainable HR practices.

What your paper adds to this?

•Differences in the implementation of sustainable HRM systems across European countries exist.

•The national institutional context highly influences the implementation of sustainable HRM systems.

•National institutional pressures outweigh the homogenization in HRM sustainability of the processes of

economic convergence in Europe.

•The varieties of capitalism paradigm approach properly reflects the existence of two different HRM sus-

tainability models in Europe.

Implications of the study findings for practitioners

•To attract talented employees, firms should take as a reference point the sustainable HRM system of

Nordic companies.

•To advance the homogenization of labor practices at the European level, supranational coercive pres-

sures should have more weight.

DIAZ-CARRION ET AL.121