The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of work-from-home (WFH) human resource (HR) practices on the performance of faculty under the drastic circumstances of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The population of the study included faculty members of the higher education institutions in Sialkot, Pakistan. The study filled the gap of scarce literature on the impact of various HR practices by HR officials while working from home during lockdown observed to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Based on reinforcement theory, this article proves that there is a significant relationship between HR practices (including training, performance appraisal, career planning, employee participation, job definition, compensation, and selection) and faculty performance. It also proves that there is a strong positive relationship between the two variables. The findings of this study provide a blueprint to improve HR practices for high performance by faculty in the higher education sector during WFH settings.
Purpose This study aims to predict ethical self-identity’s effect on consumer buying behavior of biodegradable bags. Moreover, a moderated mediation model is tested by analyzing the mediating role of attitude and the moderating role of religiosity to investigate buying behavior. Few studies have been conducted to explore moderated mediation to predict consumer behavior based on belief congruence and planned behavior theories, according to previous literature, indicating a literature gap in consumer behavior studies. Accordingly, the moderating role of religiosity in the relationship between ethical self-identity and purchase intention in the context of biodegradable bags was used to contribute to the consumer behavior literature. Design/methodology/approach The population of the study included literate consumers who are aware of biodegradable bags and keen to buy them. The data were collected from consumers of twin cities (Rawalpindi/Islamabad) via purposive sampling. The data were collected from 310 consumers five-time lags. Findings The findings suggest that ethical self-identity influences the buying behavior of consumers toward biodegradable bags. In this study, the theory of planned behavior provides greater implications to predict consumer buying behavior because the subjective norm, perceived behavioral control and attitude were found to have a significant influence on purchase intention, which further predicts the actual consumer behavior. Research limitations/implications The study’s sample was limited to one geographical area and the sample was limited to only biodegradable bags. Future studies may go for a cross-comparison of industries or multiple environment-friendly products to enhance the generalizability of the research. Practical implications This study provides useful insights to the companies of consumer-based brands to use eco-friendly practices from production to packaging and consumption. Environment-friendly consumers are ready to pay a premium price for environment-friendly products, which encourages decision-makers companies to cater to this niche market. Moreover, companies can focus on factors that influence their decision-making, such as ethical and moral values of responsibility, while planning their advertising strategies. Furthermore, the positioning of the environmental or consumer personal care products should be done by considering the personal disposition factors because they reinforce the actual behavior of employees. Social implications For researchers, this research opens new avenues for predicting consumers’ buying behavior by applying the theory of planned behavior in the plastic bag industry. This study provides useful insights to the companies of consumer-based brands to use eco-friendly practices from production to packaging and consumption. Originality/value The proclivity to buy biodegradable bags increased over time, providing opportunities to the companies to offer environmentally friendly products to an increasing number of customers. However, personal deposition factors, such as religiosity and consumer views, are less well understood in terms of predicting actual behavior. Few studies have been conducted to explore moderated mediation to predict consumer behavior based on belief congruence and planned behavior theories, according to previous literature, indicating a literature gap in consumer behavior studies.
The purpose of this study is to find empirical evidence on whether work from home or residential emissions reduces office emissions. Based on existing research the study supports that there are short-term effects on office emissions, i.e., carbon emissions do not outshine the long-term effects. The shift from offices to working from home due to COVID-19 regulations meant more people operating from home as maintaining their position in the market was crucial. The potential research area is to understand how this would affect energy usage and carbon emissions. This study has used a before and after mixed approach to collect data from 301 working-from-home employees and 348 top managers who are responsible for monitoring the employees in a work from home setting. Convenience sampling helped collect responses in a timely manner as offices were not allowing visitors and collecting data in person was difficult, so online surveys were conducted. Work from home reduced usage of office equipment, transportation, pollution, etc. The air quality improved considerably but our findings show that the low emissions were only short-lived. This was not a long-term scenario as organizations kept practicing their operations even at home and the emissions stayed in the environment. Future suggestions and implications are also provided. The results give new insights to researchers in the field of sustainability and the environment.
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) play an enormously crucial part in the modern world economy, demonstrating the most unique and incredible ground-breaking system. SMEs’ employment statistics and future worker needs make it a focus of policies among rising economies, and Pakistan is no exception. The working conditions in SMEs diverge from industry to industry; however, irrespective of the industrial categorization, the SMEs are failing to protect the workers’ rights in the perspective of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The interpretivism paradigm and purposive sampling, narrative inquiry, and analysis method have been adopted to gain in-depth knowledge of workers’ rights in SMEs concerning the SDGs. Results revealed that Pakistan-based SMEs argue to be financially weak and perceived as less equipped to adhere to the world’s standards. Highlighted issues in failure to adhere to worker’s rights include lack of financial resources, top management’s commitment, regulatory framework, SDG awareness, strategic planning, and the dire need for expert guidance and consultation in translating goals to work environments.
The corporate sector has paid attention to the concept of sustainable development since the emergence of this concept in the late 1980s and the adoption of Environmental Management Systems (EMS) by many organizations is the initiative of these organizations’ exact dimensions. The focus of this research is to compare the status of EMS adopter and EMS non-adopter organizations in terms of Environmental Performance, Occupational health and safety performance, Employee Satisfaction, Operational Improvement and competitive advantage. The overall environmental performance of EMS adopter companies was approximately two times higher than non-EMS adopter companies. EMS adopter organizations’ performance was almost two times better than non-EMS adopter organizations regarding occupational health and safety. The overall Employee Satisfaction level at non-EMS adopter organizations was about three times better than at EMS adopter organizations. The EMS adopter organizations were found to have about three times performance regarding operational improvement. Regarding the competitive advantage gained by the EMS adopter companies compared to the non-EMS adopter organizations, no significant difference was observed between these two categories of organizations. However, The EMS adopter organizations seem to have a slight competitive advantage over non-adopter companies.
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