Mary Pang

Distributive and procedural justice as predictors of employee outcomes in Hong Kong

This study examines the extent to which employee judgments about distributive and procedural justice predict job satisfaction, intent to stay and evaluation of supervision in Hong Kong. Distributive and procedural justice each plays a role in determining work outcomes of Hong Kong employees. However, some effects of these justice variables differ from results of previous studies in the United States (U.S.). First, in previous U.S. studies, procedural justice moderates the relationship of distributive justice with evaluation of supervision, but not with job satisfaction or intent to stay. For Hong Kong employees, procedural justice moderates the effects of distributive justice on job satisfaction and intent to stay, but not on evaluation of supervision. Second, previous U.S. studies have shown that procedural justice has a larger effect on work outcomes for women, while distributive justice has larger effects on outcomes for men. For Hong Kong employees, the effects of procedural and distributive justice are about the same for men and women. Differences in the effects of distributive and procedural justice between Hong Kong and the U.S. may reflect cultural dimensions, such as collectivism/individualism and power distance, as well as the relative availability of rewards for women in the work force. Practical implications and future research directions are discussed. Copyright

Learning to stay ahead in an uncertain environment

As the work environment changes and careers become increasingly fragmented in contemporary society, workers need to ensure that they remain attractive hires to current and future employers. The advent of boundaryless careers, for example, in this era of turbulence has shifted the responsibility for career management and development from the organization to the employees. This research explores the careers of a cross-section of the Hong Kong (China) labour force and their attitudes and behaviours towards life-long learning, which is proposed here to be central to individuals maintaining their marketability and employability. The qualitative data collected in this study depicts these Chinese workers as being strongly self-motivated and possessing very positive attitudes towards learning. However, while most seemed to have a genuine commitment to enhancing themselves, stimulated by a consciousness of the growing and changing demands placed on them by employers in a dynamic knowledge-based society, the findings indicate that many interviewees were driven more by a fear of the consequences of not engaging in continuous learning, than by an intrinsic desire to learn.

Boundaryless careers? The (in-) voluntary (re-)actions of some Chinese in Hong Kong and Britain

This paper presents a diachronic account of the careers of two generations of Chinese in Hong Kong and two generations of Chinese in Britain. It focuses on both the intra-generational and inter-generational similarities and diversities in career development of these Chinese. Using Raider and Burts (1996) distinction between voluntary and involuntary boundaryless careers as a framework, this study concludes that the ‘firstgeneration Chinese’ in both Hong Kong and Britain were initially involuntarily bounded in their careers, but, over time, the ‘first-generation Chinese’ in Britain later chose to be voluntarily bounded to their careers, while the ‘first-generation Chinese’ in Hong Kong were pushed by macro-economic factors to experience involuntary boundarylessness. In contrast, the ‘second-generation Chinese’ in Britain are rather ambiguously placed, in a position voluntarily to choose bounded or boundaryless careers, while the ‘secondgeneration Chinese’ in Hong Kong are more firmly ensconced in a situation of pursuing voluntary boundaryless careers.

The employment situation of young Chinese adults in the British labour market

Chinese participation in the catering industry is conspicuous in Britain, but there also appears to be an emergence of young Chinese adults diversifying into other occupations and sectors in the British labour market. This paper seeks to gain an understanding of where young Chinese adults are positioned in the occupational structure, why they are situated there, and their attitudes towards their current jobs. The findings indicate that as a result of the interaction between structure and culture there is an emerging bimodal distribution of young Chinese adults in the British labour market with a tendency for young Chinese adults either to work in the professions and other white collar jobs or conversely to be employed in the service sector (that is, the Chinese catering industry).

Career Development and Knowledge Appropriation: A Genealogical Critique:

In the fast-changing and globally competitive business environment, organizations’ efforts to appropriate knowledge from their workers will be increasingly resisted by those employees forced into more fragmented and uncertain careers. We interpret this contested scenario in terms of the apparently diametrically opposed ways in which knowledge is conceptualized. The organization sees knowledge as an asset which it seeks to appropriate through mechanisms designed to achieve employment flexibility. However, this process is not unidirectional, as we posit that the individual conceives of their knowledge as ‘career capital’ and, in building it up as a response to the uncertainties of reconstituted careers, pursues a strategy of employability. With reference to Foucault’s genealogical approach, we argue that the above contest not only reflects the shifting employment relationship and economic turbulence, but is in fact a social phenomenon rooted in the knowledge−power dialectic and one which sheds light on individuals’ efforts to free themselves from the effects of normalization, thus challenging organizational efforts to appropriate the knowledge inherent in careers.

Undergraduates′ career perceptions and first job needs in Hong Kong

Examines the perceptions and expectations of Chinese graduates in Hong Kong towards their careers and initial job needs immediately prior to their graduation. The findings, which comprised quantitative data from 492 responses and qualitative data from seven interviews and two focus group meetings, show that both extrinsic and intrinsic rewards are important in career and job aspects. Discusses various issues in light of the results, such as the relationship between jobs and career, organizational commitment, occupational choice of allocations, work attitudes and environment. The analysis has implications for undergraduates, employers and career advisers.

Career strategies to strengthen graduate employees' employment position in the Hong Kong labour market

This study investigates the significance of developing career goals and adopting appropriate career strategies during the first two years of employment after graduation. Data were collected from a sample of 300 graduate employees in Hong Kong during a time when job competition has been increasingly tough. Results indicate that respondents tend to use strategies such as “enhancing promotability” (performing effectively, acquiring skills, building networks) and “improving image with superiors” (conforming to expectations, highlighting accomplishments) more frequently than “establishing external contacts” (joining professional bodies and trade associations) during early career. The relationships of career goals and strategies to satisfaction with salary and hierarchical progression are also examined. Factors such as “developing career goals and plans” and “improving image with superiors” are positively and significantly related to satisfaction with progression. Practical implications of the study findings on individuals and organizations are discussed.

Learning Approaches and Outcome‐Based Teaching and Learning: A Case Study in Hong Kong, China

Outcome‐based education is a pedagogical process which focuses on the achievement of certain specified results. Outcome‐based teaching and learning (OBTL), therefore, is concerned with curriculum design and ensuring that the contents, delivery, activities, and assessments are all aligned to help facilitate students to attain specific intended learning outcomes. This study explores whether and how outcome‐based teaching impacts on the learning approaches of one cohort of undergraduate business students at a university in Hong Kong, China to undergo outcome‐based teaching, newly introduced as part of a university‐wide policy to adopt OBTL. The learning approaches of these business students were measured using John Biggss (1987) Study Process Questionnaire (SPQ) to determine whether these students tended to favor surface learning approaches, deep learning approaches, or achieving learning approaches upon initial entry into the university. Changes in learning approaches were tracked, after a semesters exposure to OBTL, through survey and focus group interview methods. Findings indicated a significant amount of transference between learning approaches deployed by these students, demonstrating a high level of adaptability.

Barriers perceived by young Chinese adults to their employment in companies in the UK

This paper explores the perceptions and experiences of racial discrimination of young Chinese adults in the British labour market, focusing on the barriers they face in obtaining employment. It is argued that perceived discrimination is as detrimental in its effects as real discrimination, since even the belief that discriminatory practices exist in British companies is sufficient to deter many Chinese young people from seeking employment outside the Chinese catering industry. The implications arising from the discussion emphasize that discrimination results in a waste of talent and potential, which companies can ill afford, especially at a time of demographic change and skill shortages.

De-industrialization and the ‘disappeared workers’

Hong Kong has undergone a remarkable process of a complete cycle of industrialization and de-industrialization within the lifetime of one generation of workers. This paper explores the impact of this swift economic progress and examines the adjustment problems and difficulties experienced by workers displaced from their jobs in a rapidly de-industrializing society. It addresses the issue of what has become of these displaced workers. It was found that, while a proportion of the displaced workers were able to find alternative employment in the expanding services industries, many became discouraged workers who joined the ranks of the hidden unemployed, partly as a result of discrimination which compounded their problem and further hindered their search for work and employment. The data show that many of these people eventually (in)voluntarily withdrew completely from the labour market. Suggestions have been made regarding the role which can be played by the government in particular to ease the transition of displaced workers into other employment positions.