Company and union commitment: evidence from an adversarial industrial relations climate at a Korean auto plant

This study examines the feasibility and antecedents of worker commitment to company and union at an automobile plant in Korea. It utilized a sample of 331 workers at the plant who were implementing new management techniques, e.g. human resources management, total quality management and lean production. The plant had a long history of adversarial industrial relations, and its workforce was organized by the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, a union organization known for its militancy. The study found little evidence of workers' dual commitment to the company and the trade union, but instead discovered a competing commitment between company and trade union. Furthermore, company and union commitment were predicated on different factors, with workers' positive perceptions of the industrial relations climate positively affecting commitment to their company and negatively affecting commitment to their union. The findings were more consistent with those at other workplaces with an adversarial industrial relations climate rather than those with a co-operative one.     

The role of management and trade union leadership on dual commitment: The mediating effect of the workplace relations climate

This article examines the effect of transformational and laisser‐faire leadership on the part of local union leaders and immediate supervisors on the dual commitment of unionised workers. Building on the social information processing perspective, it is suggested that these leadership styles are linked to commitment through the workplace relations climate (WRC). Based on a sample of 834 unionised workers, our results suggest that WRC represents an important mechanism explaining the effect of the immediate supervisor's leadership in unionised settings. Results also show that transformational leadership on the part of union representatives is positively linked to union and organisational commitment. This article contributes to the WRC and dual commitment literatures by going beyond structural and institutional explanations and considering relational and actor‐related variables, such as leadership styles.     

香港与内地商业银行收费之比较

通过对香港银行业和内地商业银行的收费进行比较,找出内地商业银行收费（主要是中间业务收费）中存在的问题,并提出相应的解决办法。     

诠释深圳与香港集装箱港口的竞争力

本文从生产要素成本（主要包括劳动力、生产资料、资本等）、要素组织成本（主要包括组织机构、政策与规划、信息获取成本、审批程序等）、要素质量（主要包括产业规模、产业集群、个体要素）三个方面对深圳和香港集装箱港口的竞争力进行了实证分析,表明深圳的要素成本同香港相比,仍有比较明显的优势,但是深圳的制度成本比香港要高,至于生产要素的质量,深圳与香港的“硬要素”差距不大.但＂软要素＂的差距还比较明显.     

Juggling Legitimacies: Informal Places for Burials and Worship in Hong Kong

The Hong Kong government's neoliberal approach regarding land development and urbanization affects not only the housing market but also burial places, increasing inequality for both the living and the dead. The urgency of tackling the issue of places for burial is all the more pressing given current demographic changes and an existing backlog of public burial places in inner‐city locations. Against this backdrop, this paper focuses on the cultural practices around burial and worship among the inhabitants of Hong Kong, and on their struggle to maintain these practices. It illustrates various forms and means of legitimacy (e.g. pragmatic, normative and cognitive) being applied by all actors, and shows how the continuing practices around worship and burial lead to the production of informality. The main argument is that socially constructed legitimacy can be gained and lost by various actors in a dynamic negotiation process based on belief systems, rules and norms (following Suchman, 1995). Thus, it should be understood as a strategic mode both within and outside the state. This perspective of legitimacy provides a better understanding of how and by what means resources and power are being negotiated in order to draw lessons from informal dynamics.     

Behavioural responses to employment discrimination: a study of Hong Kong workers

This study examines the behavioural responses of Hong Kong workers to employment discrimination. Based on the exit-voice framework proposed by Hirschman, five possible responses (i.e. neglect, quit, internal voice, external voice and litigation) are identified. The effects of certain personal attributes and work-related factors on these responses are evaluated. Two different data sets, focusing on gender discrimination and family status discrimination, are analysed. The results of logistic regression indicate that workers with higher levels of education and sensitivity to discrimination are more likely to complain and less likely to neglect their work or resign. Additionally, men and women respond differently to sex-based discrimination. Work-related factors such as employment sector, job tenure and employer size are also found to exert significant effects. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.     

香港会展业的成功之道及借鉴思路

香港会展业呈现出发展迅速、国际化程度高、展会主题定位明确、办展主体成熟、竞争激烈等特点,其会展经济的成功发展归因于香港自由的经济政策、巨大的市场需求、良好的软硬件基础、适当的展会定位和发达的电子商务技术。借鉴香港的经验,在内地会展业的发展过程中,应该明确政府功能定位、培植会展主体、提高展会国际化程度、实现专业化发展、开展网络展览、培育专业的会展人才。     

Human resource flexibility,organizational culture and firm performance: an investigation of multinational firms in Hong Kong

This article explores the relationships between human resource (HR) flexibility, organizational culture, and organizational performance. Drawing on previous works, we develop a conceptual model that links the constructs together. It is hypothesized that the three sub-dimensions of HR flexibility (i.e. employee skill flexibility, employee behaviour flexibility, and HR practice flexibility) affect adaptability culture, which in turn impacts HR-related and market-related outcomes. The data were collected via a questionnaire survey of HR directors/managers in multinational corporations (MNCs) in Hong Kong. The results of structural equation modelling (SEM) reveal the positive effects of employee behaviour flexibility and HR practice flexibility on adaptability culture. Employee skill flexibility, however, exerts no such effect. Further, adaptability culture is found to affect both HR-related and market-related performance in a positive manner.     

The effects of job-search motives and coping on psychological health and re-employment: a study of unemployed Hong Kong Chinese

We examine the influences of job-search motives and coping behaviours on psychological well-being and re-employment on 104 unemployed Hong Kong Chinese within a longitudinal context. Participants were tested on two different occasions separated by eight months. Results indicated that, at the first survey, use of coping strategies predicted higher psychological well-being while higher financial hardship was associated with decreased mental health. Results of ANOVA indicated that participants who scored high in employment commitment at the first survey were more likely to regain employment subsequently. Contrary to prior findings reported in studies with Western samples, psychological well-being was not affected by employment status at the follow-up survey. The psychological well-being of participants deteriorated from the first to the second survey. These findings point clearly to the significance of psychological factors in determining the response of Hong Kong Chinese to job loss. Implications of these data for future unemployment research among Chinese are discussed.     

Work role stressors and turnover intentions: a study of professional clergy in Hong Kong

Work and occupational stress have long been concerns for employees and human resource managers as they cause many negative outcomes. Most of the previous studies on work stress were conducted in Western countries, while limited research has addressed this important topic in the Asian context. In this study, we examine the effects of several work role stressors (i.e. role ambiguity, role conflict, role overload and work–family conflict) on emotional exhaustion, job satisfaction and intentions to leave. Additionally, we test the mediating effects of emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction between the relationship of role stressors and intentions to leave. Data were collected from a sample of 887 professional clergy in Hong Kong. The results of regression analysis show that role stressors have a significant impact on both emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction, which in turn affect respondents' intentions to leave their organization.     

Employee acceptance of organizational change:the role of organizational commitment

This study tests a causal model that predicts the acceptance of organizational change using a sample of 761 employees from a large public hospital in the state of Victoria, Australia. The LISREL results indicate that employee acceptance of organizational change is increased by organizational commitment, a harmonious industrial relations (IR) climate, education, job motivation, job satisfaction, job security and positive affectivity, and is decreased by union membership, role conflict, tenure and environmental opportunity. Organizational commitment was found to act as both a determinant and mediator in the change process. Implications for the management of organizational change using human resource (HR) strategies and policies are discussed.     

Organizational context and human resource management strategy: a structural equation analysis of Hong Kong firms

Previous studies to explain why companies utilize particular human resource management (HRM) strategies have not adequately addressed the influence of contextual variables such as size, location, ownership, competitive pressure, technological change, age and growth. In this study, we investigate the extent to which these contextual variables are related to HRM strategy in seventy-six private-sector firms located in Hong Kong. Our analysis uses structural equations to examine the relationships among contextual variables and HRM strategy to develop and retain managers. The results show that contextual variables have both direct and indirect effects on an organization's HRM strategy. The indirect effects occur through the top management involvement of the HR function within an organization. Use of a human capital development HRM strategy reduces organizational uncertainty about having an adequate supply of managers to meet firm objectives. Contrary to our expectation, in Hong Kong firms, greater reliance on internal development and promotion tends to increase uncertainty and greater competition tends to reduce training investment. Both of these unanticipated relationships may reflect the high mobility of managers peculiar to the Hong Kong labour market.     

Comparing cases: studies of commitment systems in Australia and the United States

Using the experiences of PhD research which employed a comparative case study methodology to study industrial relations and commitment systems at brownfield and greenfield sites in Australia and the United States, this paper discusses the issues and challenges that may confront a student undertaking research of this type. It argues that while the original research questions and proposed methodology may, frustratingly, need to change during the course of the research, this can ultimately provide for a richer study and better results. The paper outlines the stages of the case study research and the complexities of combining qualitative and quantitative research methods. In conclusion, the paper briefly summarises the research findings to demonstrate the benefits of long-term, organisationally based case studies.     

Theorising determinants of employee voice: an integrative model across disciplines and levels of analysis

This article critiques organisational behaviour (OB) research on employee voice and presents a broader‐based conceptual model that integrates ideas and concepts across employment relationship disciplines and levels of analysis. OB studies err by taking an overly individualistic, psychological, managerialist and de‐institutionalised perspective on employee voice. This criticism is documented and illustrated with numerous examples from the OB literature. To provide a constructive step forward, the article presents an enlarged model of employee voice that not only includes OB but also brings in important contributions from the HRM, industrial relations, labour economics and labour process fields. The model provides an integrative framework for theoretical and empirical studies of voice and yields a number of research and practice implications.     

The differential effects of work- and family-oriented women-friendly HRM on OC and OCB: the case for single female employees in Hong Kong

Research on women-friendly HRM often presumes working women are homogeneous in their wants and needs of organizational support. Few such studies have examined how female employees of different marital and parental statuses might perceive women-friendly HRM differently. This study categorizes organizational womenfriendliness into two aspects, namely work- and family-oriented, and explores if the two types of organizational support are equally important to single working women who do not have children. The effects of work- and family-oriented women-friendly policies on their job attitudes and organizational behaviours were examined. It was found that workoriented policies had a positive impact on single female employees' level of affective commitment and altruistic behaviours. In contrast, family-oriented policies were positively related to continuance commitment. Neither of the two sets of policies had any effect on compliant behaviours. The results highlight the importance of a careful examination of the demography of the workforce in trying to devise effective women-friendly organizational strategies and HR policies.     

It is not just about paying your dues: Impact of generational cohort on active and passive union participation

The lack of a validated measure of active–passive union participation and a dearth of research into the relationship between generational cohort and union participation challenge union leaders to develop policies and practices to facilitate union renewal. We address these issues by (a) developing a multidimensional measure of union participation that captures both active and passive components, (b) using structural equation modelling to validate the measure within a nomological framework, and (c) investigating the impact of generational cohort on all paths in our framework. Data from members of a large American union confirm that generational cohort influences how union members participate in their union. The two‐factor measure developed in this study facilitates research into antecedents and outcomes of passive and active union participation. Our findings should also prove useful to unions seeking to increase participation within their membership, academics researching unions and generational cohort, and human resource practitioners operating in unionised environments.     

Performance appraisal and culture: practice and attitudes in Hong Kong and Great Britain

This article compares the practice of and attitudes towards performance appraisal for managerial and professional staff in Hong Kong and Britain, and considers the extent to which actual practice and employee preferences are in alignment. Findings suggest that appraisal may be more widespread in Hong Kong than in Britain. However, British appraisal tends to be more participative and to place greater emphasis on discussing objectives, development and career plans. Hong Kong appraisals appear to be more directive and Hong Kong respondents perceive a higher level of 'negative' appraiser behaviour. In spite of this, Hong Kong respondents show if anything slightly more confidence in the utility of appraisal than do British respondents. They show stronger support for appraisal's use for reward and punishment and less support for the objectives-setting and training and development uses than do the British sample. Hong Kong respondents are more likely than their British counterparts to favour involving a more senior manager in appraisal, and they are less likely to prefer more frequent appraisals. There was little evidence that Hong Kong respondents had a stronger preference for group-based appraisal criteria, although they did show more support than the British sample for the use of personality as a basis for appraisal. Overall, the suggestion is that appraisal has been adopted in Hong Kong organizations but that the practice of appraisal has been adapted to suit the cultural characteristics of the society.     

港澳网络统战的系统观照——兼谈高校的网络统战工作

随着互联网的迅猛发展,积极推进网络统战工作是新世纪新阶段港澳统战形势的迫切要求。通过拓展网络统战工作,发挥高校统战工作优势,将能进一步做好港澳人心回归工作,更好地巩固和发展港澳爱国统一战线。     

Prosumer's commitment model: The case of a biodiesel cooperative

Consumers are becoming more aware of their role in the propagation of environmental issues, the transition from passive consumer to prosumer is emerging, and it is of interest to know the commitment factors that leads the biodiesel prosumer to act in favor of an organization which they belong in order to achieve one goal in common and contribute to local sustainable development. In this research, the prosumer is the one who participates as a member and consumer of a biodiesel cooperative. The prosumer's commitment is made up of two components: (i) nonactive or affective, identification with the organization, and (ii) active or participatory, action towards certain goals. The objectives of the investigation are to evaluate the biodiesel prosumer's commitment and know its causes and effects. The hypotheses on the causes and results of the prosumer's commitment are postulated in a structural equation model (SEM), whose theoretical basis corresponds to the double role of the prosumer: member and client of the cooperative. The SEM is evaluated from the perspective of the prosumer based on mixed methodology and partial least square (PLS). The proposed SEM explains 78% (R² = 0.78) of the variability of the contribution of the biodiesel cooperative to local sustainable development, where this contribution is directly and significantly impacted by the two components of the commitment. This case study identifies dimensions that lead the biodiesel prosumer to commit in the cocreation and consumption of renewable fuel, which gives more opportunities for long-term survival of this initiative in a competitive market.     

A Comparative Study of the Benefits of Applying Target Cost Contracts Between South Australia and Hong Kong

This article aims to identify and analyze the key benefits of adopting Guaranteed Maximum Price and Target Cost Contracts (GMP/TCC) over and above the traditional lump‐sum contractual arrangement through an empirical questionnaire survey conducted in South Australia and compared with the findings in Hong Kong. The Mann‐Whitney U Test indicated differences in perception between the two groups of respondents on the majority of the identified benefits. The study has provided an in‐depth understanding of the perceived benefits of the GMP/TCC scheme, hence leading to a wider application of those alternative integrated procurement strategies in both regions for reference by the construction community at large.