Christopher D. Zatzick

Who’s Displaced First? The Role of Race in Layoff Decisions

We test empirically the proposition that race significantly affects an employees layoff chances. Using data from a financial firm (N = 8918), we find that whites are less likely to be laid off than nonwhites and that, among nonwhites, Asians are less likely to be laid off than blacks or Hispanics. These findings are statistically significant after controlling for structural factors (business unit, occupation, and job level) and individual characteristics (tenure and performance rating). A similar pattern of racial differences exists in other employment practices more actively monitored by the firm, including promotions, pay raises, and performance ratings. Yet these differences are smaller than those in layoffs and are significant for blacks only, not for Hispanics. Our findings suggest that monitoring personnel decisions can reduce racial inequality. Furthermore, our findings highlight that racial differences in employment outcomes vary among minority groups.

Putting employee involvement in context: a cross-level model examining job satisfaction and absenteeism in high-involvement work systems

The current study examines how high-involvement work systems (HIWS) influence employee responses to involvement initiatives. While existing research has linked HIWS to individual attitudes, we predict that an organizations HIWS moderate the relationship between employee involvement and job satisfaction and absenteeism. Using multilevel data (8454 employees from 1429 workplaces), we found that employee involvement and HIWS are positively related to employee job satisfaction. Additionally, the results support a cross-level interaction: at high levels of HIWS, employee involvement is negatively related to absenteeism, whereas at low levels of HIWS, the negative relationship is weaker. The implications of the findings are discussed.

Disseminating alcohol screening and brief intervention at trauma centers: a policy-relevant cluster randomized effectiveness trial.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS In 2005 the American College of Surgeons passed a mandate requiring that level I trauma centers have mechanisms to identify and intervene with problem drinkers. The aim of this investigation was to determine if a multi-level trauma center intervention targeting both providers and patients would lead to higher-quality alcohol screening and brief intervention (SBI) when compared with trauma center mandate compliance without implementation enhancements. DESIGN Cluster randomized trial in which intervention site (site n = 10, patient n = 409) providers received 1-day workshop training on evidence-based motivational interviewing (MI) alcohol interventions and four 30-minute feedback and coaching sessions; control sites (site n = 10, patient n = 469) implemented the mandate without study team training enhancements. SETTING Trauma centers in the United States of America. PARTICIPANTS A total of 878 blood alcohol-positive in-patients with and without traumatic brain injury (TBI). MEASUREMENTS MI skills of providers were assessed with fidelity coded standardized patient interviews. All patients were interviewed at baseline and 6- and 12-months post-injury with the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). FINDINGS Intervention site providers consistently demonstrated enhanced MI skills compared with control providers. Intervention patients demonstrated an 8% reduction in AUDIT hazardous drinking relative to controls over the course of the year after injury (relative risk = 0.88, 95%, confidence interval = 0.79, 0.98). Intervention patients were more likely to demonstrate improvements in alcohol use problems in the absence of traumatic brain injury (TBI) (P = 0.002). CONCLUSION Trauma center providers can be trained to deliver higher-quality alcohol screening and brief intervention (SBI) than untrained providers, which is associated with modest reductions in alcohol use problems, particularly among patients without TBI.

High-Commitment Work Practices and Downsizing Harshness in Australian Workplaces

This study examines the relationship between high-commitment work practices (HCWP) and downsizing. The results based on a large, representative sample of Australian workplaces supported our predictions. Consistent with previous research, HCWP was positively related to workforce reduction. However, workplaces with more HCWP used less harsh strategies (e.g., more employee-friendly approaches to downsizing) such as voluntary layoffs and early retirement than the harsher strategy of compulsory layoffs. The implications of these findings are discussed.

The effect of perceived person-job fit on employee attitudes toward change in trauma centers.

Background: Employee attitudes toward change are critical for health care organizations implementing new procedures and practices. When employees are more positive about the change, they are likely to behave in ways that support the change, whereas when employees are negative about the change, they will resist the changes. Purpose: This study examined how perceived person–job (demands–abilities) fit influences attitudes toward change after an externally mandated change. Specifically, we propose that perceived person–job fit moderates the negative relationship between individual job impact and attitudes toward change. Methodology: We examined this issue in a sample of Level 1 trauma centers facing a regulatory mandate to develop an alcohol screening and brief intervention program. A survey of 200 providers within 20 trauma centers assessed perceived person–job fit, individual job impact, and attitudes toward change approximately 1 year after the mandate was enacted. Results: Providers who perceived a better fit between their abilities and the new job demands were more positive about the change. Further, the impact of the alcohol screening and brief intervention program on attitudes toward change was mitigated by perceived fit, where the relationship between job impact and change attitudes was more negative for providers who perceived a worse fit as compared with those who perceived a better fit. Practical Implications: Successful implementation of changes to work processes and procedures requires provider support of the change. Management can enhance this support by improving perceived person–job fit through ongoing training sessions that enhance providers’ abilities to implement the new procedures.

Exploring the relationship between compressed work hours satisfaction and absenteeism in front-line service work

Abstract There has been an upsurge of interest in compressed workweek schedules because of the opportunities they provide for enhanced organizational efficiency and more balanced work and life roles for employees. This study tested a moderated mediation model of the effects of compressed work hours satisfaction on absenteeism with the purpose of exploring both the mediation effects of emotional exhaustion and physical health and the moderating effects of sex on this relationship. It utilized data drawn from a sample of 236 contact-centre service workers linked to absenteeism data collected for a period of 12 months following the survey. Results indicated that compressed work hours satisfaction was associated with lower absenteeism and that this relationship was mediated sequentially through emotional exhaustion and physical health. Although the indirect effect of compressed work hours satisfaction on absenteeism through emotional exhaustion and physical health was not significantly different between women and men, the relationship between compressed work hours satisfaction and physical health was positive for women but not for men. The implications of these findings are discussed.

Skill underutilization and collective turnover in a professional service firm

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine skill underutilization and collective turnover in a large professional service firm (PSF). The authors hypothesize that skill underutilization is positively related to collective turnover, that skill underutilization is greater among professionals than nonprofessionals, and that the positive relationship between skill underutilization and collective turnover is stronger for professionals than for nonprofessionals. Design/methodology/approach – Using survey data from a large PSF, the authors test these predictions across 191 groups (professional and nonprofessional) in 80 offices. Collective turnover rates were taken from company records one year after the survey was administered. Findings – The authors find support for the prediction that skill underutilization is positively related to collective turnover. In addition, skill underutilization is greater among professionals than nonprofessionals within a PSF. However, the relationship between skill underutil...

Workforce churning, human capital disruption, and organisational performance in different technological contexts

We assess the influence of workforce churning on the relationship between organisational human capital and labour productivity. Building on collective turnover research and human capital theory, we examine how the components of workforce churning (i.e., voluntary turnover, involuntary turnover, and new hires) influence the relationship between existing human capital and labour productivity. Further, we examine how this influence varies according to a firms technological intensity. Our data come from 1,911 Italian manufacturing firms and reveals that collective voluntary turnover negatively affects the relationship between organisational human capital and labour productivity regardless of an organisations level of technological intensity. In contrast, collective involuntary turnover enhances the relationship between human capital and labour productivity, and its effect is even stronger for organisations with more technologically intensive operations. Finally, our results suggest that the integration of new hires disrupts the relationship between human capital and productivity, particularly for firms with technologically intensive operations.

Antecedents of customer aggressive behavior against healthcare employees

Purpose The purpose of the research was to develop a tool for measuring antecedents of customer aggressive behavior (CAB) in healthcare service settings, by identifying its roots in organizational and interpersonal dynamics. Design/methodology/approach Four studies were conducted. In Studies 1 and 2, antecedents of CAB were identified through analysis of internet reader comments and a questionnaire was distributed to students. In Study 3, scenarios were used to validate the findings of the previous studies. Finally, in Study 4, a scale was developed and validated for measuring organization- and person-related triggers of CAB using samples of 477 employees and 579 customers. Findings The concept of CAB was conceptualized and validated. In total, 18 items were identified across five dimensions: personal characteristics, uncomfortable environment, aggressive role models, reinforcement of aggressive behavior and aversive treatment. The scale demonstrated good psychometric results. Research limitations/implications The research relies mainly on customer perspective. Employees and additional stakeholders should be included to achieve more accurate information that could contribute to a better understanding of CAB and its roots. Practical implications Exploring social and organizational antecedents that trigger CAB could help healthcare managers evaluate and proactively manage CAB and its implications within their organization. Originality/value This measurement scale is the first comprehensive tool, based on Bandura’s social learning theory (1973), that may identify and measure antecedents of CAB, and could be used to reduce CAB in healthcare service settings.

Human Capital and Productivity: The Impact of Collective Employee Inflows and Outflows

This study draws on collective turnover and human capital theories to understand the effects of employee inflows and outflows on the relationship between collective human capital and labor producti...