Pay alignment: Fact or fallacy? The project will make an important contribution to our understanding of the impact of employee pay system configuration on firm performance and, in turn, on national productivity and Australia's social and economic fabric. The findings will enrich pay system theory and guide evidence-based improvement in firms' pay practices. It will help employers to identify the most contextually appropriate and effective ways to manage pay level, structure and plan choice and t ....Pay alignment: Fact or fallacy? The project will make an important contribution to our understanding of the impact of employee pay system configuration on firm performance and, in turn, on national productivity and Australia's social and economic fabric. The findings will enrich pay system theory and guide evidence-based improvement in firms' pay practices. It will help employers to identify the most contextually appropriate and effective ways to manage pay level, structure and plan choice and thus to design pay systems that employees in different workplace contexts perceive as fair and that enhance organisational performance and ability to attract, motivate and retain high calibre staff.Read moreRead less
The Impact Of Globalisation On Employment Relations: A Comparison Of The Auto And Banking Industries In Australia And Korea. The project compares the impact of globalisation on employment relations in Australia and South Korea by analysing changes in the auto and banking industries since the mid 1990s. It is expected that the interactions between economic factors, institutional arrangements and strategic decision making will have led to both continuity and change in employment relations during t ....The Impact Of Globalisation On Employment Relations: A Comparison Of The Auto And Banking Industries In Australia And Korea. The project compares the impact of globalisation on employment relations in Australia and South Korea by analysing changes in the auto and banking industries since the mid 1990s. It is expected that the interactions between economic factors, institutional arrangements and strategic decision making will have led to both continuity and change in employment relations during this period. The study will introduce a new theoretical dimension to comparative industrial relations by testing an ?interaction? approach. It will also provide a deeper understanding of the reasons for similarities and differences between employment relations in Australia and South Korea and indicate likely future developments.Read moreRead less
Identity and intimacy in a virtual world: designing meaningful, responsible and effective virtual work. This project will help to bring theories of work design into the twenty-first century by acknowledging the important role of electronic communication reliance and being in remote locations for determining work outcomes, and offering concrete alternatives, including building identity and intimacy, to manage virtual work to leverage benefits and mitigate costs.
Equal Employment Opportunity in Australia and Britain: Policy Approaches and Progress. Equal employment opportunity policies were introduced in Australia and Britain from the 1980s in response to women's disadvantaged workforce position. These policies aimed to eliminate barriers to women's equal participation. Similar approaches were taken in both countries, but Australia's was underpinned by legislation, while Britain's was employer led and voluntary. No independent examination of these progr ....Equal Employment Opportunity in Australia and Britain: Policy Approaches and Progress. Equal employment opportunity policies were introduced in Australia and Britain from the 1980s in response to women's disadvantaged workforce position. These policies aimed to eliminate barriers to women's equal participation. Similar approaches were taken in both countries, but Australia's was underpinned by legislation, while Britain's was employer led and voluntary. No independent examination of these programs has yet been undertaken. This project examines the rationale and model for EEO in both countries, compares outcomes achieved and the role of legislation in explaining differences in EEO outcomes. It will contribute to national policy analysis and produce refereed publications.Read moreRead less
An international evaluation of work-family balance: Validation of the work-family balance measure and theoretical model. Work-family imbalance costs Australia $8 billion per annum, via staff absenteeism, turnover, and health costs. By employing two Australian and three international experts, this project will investigate the long-term process of work-family balance, identify effective employment policies, and produce a new balance measure for use by industry and government. This will lead to imp ....An international evaluation of work-family balance: Validation of the work-family balance measure and theoretical model. Work-family imbalance costs Australia $8 billion per annum, via staff absenteeism, turnover, and health costs. By employing two Australian and three international experts, this project will investigate the long-term process of work-family balance, identify effective employment policies, and produce a new balance measure for use by industry and government. This will lead to improved health, personal satisfaction and employment choices for working Australians, and hence higher productivity for industry. The research addresses the second national research priority: promoting and maintaining good health. The consequential contributions to knowledge will directly benefit Australia's regard within the global academic community.Read moreRead less
Sexual harassment in Australia: Contexts, outcomes and prevention. Sexual harassment remains a persistent workplace issue with significant social costs. The project will examine how to most effectively prevent sexual harassment and to reduce the impact of sexual harassment for individuals and organizations where it occurs. A comprehensive analysis will be undertaken, drawing on a longitudinal study of more than 100 'targets' of sexual harassment, interviews with a wide range of employers and ext ....Sexual harassment in Australia: Contexts, outcomes and prevention. Sexual harassment remains a persistent workplace issue with significant social costs. The project will examine how to most effectively prevent sexual harassment and to reduce the impact of sexual harassment for individuals and organizations where it occurs. A comprehensive analysis will be undertaken, drawing on a longitudinal study of more than 100 'targets' of sexual harassment, interviews with a wide range of employers and external complaint handling bodies, and an analysis of formal and informal reports. The project outcomes will contribute to improved policy and practice in workplaces and human rights and assist other bodies to prevent and more effectively respond to sexual harassment.Read moreRead less
Customising work through manager-employee exchange. This project will explore how managers and employees customise the terms and conditions of standardised employment arrangements. The results will inform legislation such as right to request provisions and organisational strategies such as manager training which support effective, mutually beneficial manager-employee exchanges.
The Impact of Hiring and Firing Costs on Wages and Unemployment. Hiring and firing costs are a crucial part of intense debates over relationships between labour market flexibility, wages and unemployment. However, we have little information about their levels and structure. Using a new theoretical model of the impact of hiring and firing costs, together with information from a large-scale survey of Australian firms, this project quantifies their impacts on wages and unemployment. Better infor ....The Impact of Hiring and Firing Costs on Wages and Unemployment. Hiring and firing costs are a crucial part of intense debates over relationships between labour market flexibility, wages and unemployment. However, we have little information about their levels and structure. Using a new theoretical model of the impact of hiring and firing costs, together with information from a large-scale survey of Australian firms, this project quantifies their impacts on wages and unemployment. Better information about these impacts will contribute to current policy on training, unfair dismissal laws, and regulation of overtime. Efficiency gains from better policy will be a major national benefit, together with improved prospects for unemployed Australians.Read moreRead less
Motivating Employee Proactivity by Redesigning the Work Context. Self-starting and innovative employees are increasingly important in today's decentralised organisations. The central question investigated in this project via a longitudinal research design is how organisations can facilitate this type of proactive behavior amongst employees. The project also investigates the nature of employee proactivity (e.g. how it differs from other behaviors), and its consequences for employee performance, i ....Motivating Employee Proactivity by Redesigning the Work Context. Self-starting and innovative employees are increasingly important in today's decentralised organisations. The central question investigated in this project via a longitudinal research design is how organisations can facilitate this type of proactive behavior amongst employees. The project also investigates the nature of employee proactivity (e.g. how it differs from other behaviors), and its consequences for employee performance, innovation, and mental health. The project is significant because it focuses on how to promote behaviors that have often been neglected in research.Read moreRead less
The psychological contract: Bridging human resource management practices and organisational effectiveness. Many managers believe that recent changes in management practice are responsible for Australia's high labour productivity but very little is known about the mechanisms through which such effects are transmitted. Will HRM enable Australian organisations to generate and maintain a competitive advantage in the global context? In this project we draw on theoretical frameworks established in ....The psychological contract: Bridging human resource management practices and organisational effectiveness. Many managers believe that recent changes in management practice are responsible for Australia's high labour productivity but very little is known about the mechanisms through which such effects are transmitted. Will HRM enable Australian organisations to generate and maintain a competitive advantage in the global context? In this project we draw on theoretical frameworks established in the behavioural sciences to understand how HRM practices influence employee reactions and impact organisational effectiveness, such as labour productivity. The results will be of direct benefit to Australian organisations designing, evaluating, or reconfiguring their HRM practices in line with their competitive strategy.Read moreRead less