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Motivated by social role and conservation of resources theories, we examine the link between innovative work behaviour and employee career satisfaction, and how workplace flexibility and work-related engagement behaviour relate to innovative work behaviour, comparing samples of male and female service sector employees. We apply a quantitative approach involving a self-administered cross-sectional survey of 176 female and 133 male employees in the Kuwaiti services sector. Gathered survey data was analysed with the aid of partial least squares structural equation modelling and involved using the SmartPLS software. From the analysis, our study finds a positive and significant relationship for work flexibility and engagement behaviour with respect to innovative work behaviour, and a stronger relationship between work flexibility and work-related engagement behaviour. Our results also suggest a positive and significant link between creativity-based work behaviour and career satisfaction for female employees, and between implementation-based work behaviour and career satisfaction for male employees. Our research is original in shedding light on the salient differences that exist between the innovative work behaviour of male and female employees with regard to career satisfaction. Theoretically, we advance a flexibility-engagement-innovativeness-satisfaction relationship that promotes career satisfaction, and diversity/inclusivity in workplaces, while managerially, our study recommends continuous reframing and use of innovative work behaviour-based incentives and talent optimisation policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of required remote work on work–family spillover within U.S. college sport. In particular, we examined the changes in work–family spillover (positive and negative), job commitment, and workaholism as employee's work environment changed from traditional work expectations to work from home, and if these changes were, at least partially, due to parental responsibilities. Data were collected from full-time, National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) athletic department employees (n = 1,139) in November 2019 and again in May 2020 following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and after the transition to remote work. Results showed that sport employees found a number of benefits associated with working remotely, including a significant decrease in negative work–family spillover. However, employees with children at home reported higher levels of negative family–work spillover after going to remote work. Workaholism was also higher after the move to remote work. Both theoretical and practical implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines how employees make sense of their long work hours. We use a case study of an administrative unit at a public university in the United States, where expectations of working long hours are relatively low and employees have organizational resources to achieve work-life balance. Even so, we find that many employees still work more than expected and feel the need to work over the weekends. These employees overwhelmingly attribute their long hours to their personalities. Because many employees view their work as central to their existence, they invest their emotional energy and drive themselves to work longer hours than is expected from their supervisors and the institution. This individualized understanding that uses personality as a cultural frame persists and operates as a justification for long work hours even when other causes, such as staff shortage, were present. These findings imply that removing organizational expectations and rewards for long work hours alone is not enough for employees to achieve work-life balance because personal work ethics can still drive working long hours in the cultural context that puts high moral values on long work hours. In the conclusion, we discuss policies and cultural shifts needed to address these problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractWorkplace flexibility has become increasingly popular and important within the landscape of human resource management especially during and even after the COVID19-pandemic among young working adults. The objective of this study is to identify the influence of four forms of workplace flexibility on employee engagement. The study used online questionnaire and were answered by 185 young working adults below 30 years old as of 2022 through Google Form. The data were analyzed by using partial least square (PLS) structural equation modelling (SEM) technique. The study found that workspace flexibility and operational flexibility have significant positive relationships with employee engagement. This study provides practical and direct implications for business and society. Besides that, this research also adds values to the understanding of workplace flexibility and employee engagement for human resource scholars.

This article explores the application to Italy of Goldin's hypothesis that the unexplained gender pay gap is crucially linked to firms' incentive to disproportionately reward individuals who work long and particular hours. The study draws mainly on Italian responses to the 2014 European Structure of Earnings Survey for data on earnings and the individual characteristics of employees and their employer, but also uses data from the Occupational Information Network and the Italian Sample Survey on Professions to measure characteristics reflecting the work context within occupations. For graduate and non-graduate workers, the results reveal a positive relationship between various measures of the unexplained gender pay gap and the elasticity of earnings with respect to work hours. For graduate workers, in accordance with Goldin's hypothesis, both these variables are correlated with the occupational characteristics that impose earnings penalties on workers seeking more workplace flexibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, flexible working arrangements (FWAs) have emerged as a popular alternative to traditional working practices, and their use has escalated since the onset of COVID-19. Although previous studies have highlighted the importance of changes induced by COVID-19, few studies have provided a comprehensive overview. This review highlights these issues by incorporating the SCM-TBFO framework. The authors elaborated the framework by categorizing the variables identified under this framework into four primary dimensions: employee-oriented, socio-cultural, infrastructural, and employer-oriented. The findings indicate that although FWAs were studied widely before the pandemic, the focus was mainly on Western countries and multi-sector datasets. However, with the onset of the pandemic, the context of studies began to change. Furthermore, the conservation of resources theory has been the most frequently used school of thought, with regression analysis as the prevailing method. The study examines these findings, offers insights into future research directions, and suggests concrete implications for employers and managers, hence emphasizing the need to comprehend the triggers that indicate the necessity for FWA, such as work–life integration, rectify the barriers such as cyber risks, and encourage the facilitators, such as supervisory support, to achieve favorable organizational outcomes. In addition, it highlights the need for government interventions to incentivize alternative arrangements that promote diversity and inclusion within the corporate sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 4‐day work week (4DWW) was popularised in the 1970s, but has recently gained significant global attention again, with a growing number of organisations experimenting with the 4DWW in response to increasing demand for more flexible work arrangements (FWA) in the aftermath of the COVID‐19 pandemic. The emergence of generative AI tools like ChatGPT, with their potential to support worktime reduction strategies, are also refuelling interest in a shorter working week. This renewed interest motivated this scoping review of 1769 4DWW records from the past 52 years and enabled the authors to identify five major themes: employee acceptance, allocation of time, leisure, gender and career advancement, and productivity. These themes are used to consider specific forms of 4DWW in terms of whether days of work are fixed or flexible, whether the 4DWW is an employee option, and whether total weekly hours worked or pay are reduced. Conservation of resources theory is used as a lens for interpreting the themes. The authors believe these themes and lessons have significant implications for a growing number of scholars and practitioners, who are investigating, trialling, and implementing 4DWW arrangements, in response to growing demand for more FWA options from employees across all sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the associations between Simons' (Levers of control: how managers use innovative control systems to drive strategic renewal. Harvard Business Press, Brighton, 1995) positive systems (belief systems and interactive control systems) and two organisational capabilities (organisational resilience and workplace flexibility), and the subsequent impact of these capabilities on organisational performance. Based upon the survey responses received from the managers of 337 Australian organisations, we found that the use of both belief systems and interactive control systems are positively associated with the level of organisational resilience and workplace flexibility, which in turn, exhibit a significant positive effect on organisational performance. In addition, the two organisational capabilities are found to mediate the associations between the positive systems and organisational performance. The findings suggest that organisations should place greater emphasis on the use of positive systems and endeavour to develop and enhance organisational resilience and workplace flexibility to facilitate organisational performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent research argues that the availability of flexible work arrangements (FWA) is unequally distributed among workers. Meanwhile, the Covid-19 pandemic has drastically transformed the way we work, including the abrupt introduction of telework. However, we know little about how workers are stratified in telework usage under the global crisis and how it differs from pre-pandemic times. This study leverages the nation-wide longitudinal survey data in Japan to investigate (a) who are more/less likely to be excluded from telework and (b) how the structure changes from 2019 to 2022, with close attention to both absolute and relative shifts. The analysis shows (a) the absolute amount of telework opportunities has increased in the wake of the pandemic; but (b) the relative inequality among workers has rather been intensified since 2020, with the probability of non-telework ranging from 0.6 to 0.9 across their socio-economic attributes and (c) labour stratification in telework use persists over time despite its fluctuating magnitude. One may call this social phenomenon 'flexibly maintained inequality (FMI)' in that relative inequalities remain via adjusting their absolute thresholds across worker segments. Examining the mechanism of FMI and its impact on individuals, organisations, and societies is crucial for future research and relevant policy/practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: New forms of digital work such as crowdwork promise to increase potentials for flexible working. As crowdworkers can work highly autonomous and from anywhere at any time via the internet, they may be able to make work and private demands more compatible and avoid role conflicts between the life spheres, and in turn, experience enhanced well-being. OBJECTIVE: This research asked whether crowdworkers benefit from flexible working potentials. It investigated the association of the use of different dimensions of flexible working (flex-time, flex-place, and task autonomy) in crowdwork with work-life conflict and well-being. Moreover, it explored whether the relationship between flexible working and well-being was mediated by work-life conflict. METHODS: The study drew upon a sample of 470 crowdworkers from a cross-sectional self-assessment survey on four different German crowdwork platforms. Structural equation modeling was conducted to estimate the effects of flexible working on work-life conflict, somatic health symptoms, and life satisfaction. Indirect effects were estimated to test the mediation hypothesis. RESULTS: The findings suggest that if crowdworkers use temporal and task flexibility, they experience fewer work-life conflict, fewer somatic health symptoms, and greater life satisfaction. This does not apply to flex-place. The relationship between flexible working and well-being is partly mediated by work-life conflict experiences. CONCLUSION: This study supports that crowdwork offers a high potential for working highly autonomous and flexibly in time and place. It is associated with lower levels of work-life conflict and enhanced well-being, but the benefits of this flexibility are not universally included in crowdwork. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study investigates to what extent empowering HRM practices (i.e., workplace flexibility, professional autonomy, and access to knowledge via ICT) and empowering leadership have the potential to motivate employees in displaying workplace proactivity in NWW contexts. The study builds on the empowerment theory to gain a better understanding of how employees are able to make choices in order to achieve the goals set in their work and how leadership can support this. A field study was conducted in four subsidiaries of a large Dutch bank active in the financial sector. In line with expectations, positive relationships were found between professional autonomy, access to knowledge via ICT and empowering leadership, on the one hand, and psychological empowerment, on the other. Also, in line with expectations, a positive relationship was found between psychological empowerment and workplace proactivity. Moreover, as hypothesized, psychological empowerment partly mediated the relationship between the HRM practices and empowering leadership and workplace proactivity. However, autonomy had a direct, negative effect on workplace proactivity. Also workplace flexibility was neither directly nor indirectly associated with workplace proactivity. Finally, HRM and leadership can be viewed as complementary as they combine different perspectives for employees in order to display proactive workplace behaviour. In conclusion, the empowerment process approach helped to disentangle the motivating elements that foster workplace proactivity in modern workplaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Linked to technological and societal developments, including the COVID‐19 pandemic, employees are increasingly being given the opportunity to blend onsite and remote working including flexibility as to when and where they work. Despite the proliferation of such blended working, there is little empirical research on how leaders in organizations can contribute to facilitating its effectiveness. In the present study, we hypothesized that an empowering leadership style would be positively associated with employees' perceptions of the effectiveness of blended working. Additionally, grounded in Self‐Determination Theory, we hypothesized that the satisfaction of employees' work‐related psychological needs for autonomy and for competence would mediate this relation. Results of a field study (N = 405 employees) using a two‐wave panel design supported a cross‐lagged effect of empowering leadership on employees' perceptions of the effectiveness of blended working. However, no evidence was found for the hypothesized mediated relations. Our findings could be of value to organizations as they indicate a specific leadership style that is likely to facilitate the effectiveness of blended working. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the mediator role of the psychological contract on the effect of workplace flexibility on organizational commitment was examined. The sample of the research consists of 112 participants working in different sectors and positions in Istanbul. To test the research hypotheses, Simple Regression Analysis and Hierarchical Regression Analysis were performed. As a result of the analyses, the full mediator role of the relational psychological contract and the partial mediator role of the transactional psychological contract on the relationship between workplace flexibility and affective commitment and normative commitment were determined. With the inclusion of continuance commitment in the analysis as a dependent variable, the mediating role of both types of psychological contracts did not occur. Organizations can influence their employees’ psychological contracts and increase their commitment to the organization by providing flexibility in the work environment. There is a limited number of national studies in which employees’ perceptions of flexible practices in the workplace are considered. Also, it is predicted that examining flexibility within the scope of different models will contribute to the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines cross-national differences in workplace flexibility between the U.S. and China. Data from 2,688 employees of three multinational corporations with worksites located in both the U.S. and China demonstrated that Chinese viewed workplace flexibility as less important, perceived fewer benefits and more costs associated with its use, and reported less access to and use of flexibility than Americans. Access to flexibility was linked to higher job satisfaction for Americans, but not for Chinese. Both access to and use of flexibility were linked to higher satisfaction with work-family balance for Americans, but not for Chinese, with the exception of access to flexplace that was linked to higher satisfaction with work-family balance for both. We conclude that workplace flexibility policies may produce different results in countries with different levels of industrialization (developed vs. emerging) and cultural orientation (individualism-collectivism) and suggest that such policies should be customized to improve their congruence with national contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we exploit the natural experiment of the COVID-19 outbreak and investigate the role of collaborative integration and workplace flexibility in scholarly productivity. Using data on the quantity and quality of the journal and working paper submissions, we first identify a discontinuity pattern in the productivity of Chinese scholars around the Chinese New Year (CNY). Second, we find that COVID-19 has a negative impact on the productivity of Chinese scholars in terms of quantity and quality post-CNY. Furthermore, the short-term detrimental effect on scholarly productivity is induced mainly through the channel of collaborative integration and workplace flexibility due to mitigation policy shocks in terms of social distancing and working-from-home arrangements. The results suggest while advances in virtual communication technologies can facilitate productivity by lowering collaboration costs, virtual team communication cannot be a perfect substitute for face-to-face communication in collaborative integration. In addition, higher workplace flexibility might hinder productivity in sectors relying more on the skills of self-management and discipline., Competing Interests: The author declares that he has no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2022 Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)