Examination of HRM practices in relation to the retention of Chinese Gen Z employees

Abstract

Employee retention has attracted the attention of both scholars and practitioners, especially with the gradual entry of Gen Z employees into the workplace. HRM literature indicates that the employee retention research stream in the context of Gen Z employees requires further development. Based on an exploratory study, this research has identified four HRM practices influencing the retention of Gen Z employees: supportive working environment, pay, training and development, and role clarity. An empirical investigation using 529 questionnaires was used to examine the impact of these HRM practices on retaining Gen Z employees with an emphasis on the moderating role of employee gender. The findings of PLS-SEM showed that the four HRM practices have a significant effect on employee retention. The multi-group PLS analysis revealed that a supportive working environment and training and development practices are more important for female employees, whereas pay and role clarity had a salient impact on retaining male employees. Based on the empirical findings, HR managers may devise suitable intervention mechanisms to encourage the retention of Gen Z employees through maintaining a supportive work environment, providing fair and competitive pay, providing effective training and development, and clarifying job duties and responsibilities.

Developing Theoretical and Methodological Provisions for Improving the Mechanism of Labour Efficiency

“…The results of study Ali et al (2024) advocate the importance of four major HRM practices in retaining Gen Z employees: working environment, pay, role clarity and training and development. Employers need to ensure that the working environment is supportive for Gen Z employees.…”