Implementation of high-performance work practices in the Spanish private sector

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide an overall picture of the level of implementation of high-performance work practices (HPWP) in Spain, as well as to identify changes after three years of severe economic and financial crisis. The practices analysed include selective hiring, extensive training, information sharing, contingent remuneration and job security. Design/methodology/approach – By means of logistic regressions, the author estimates the determinants of these practices, during a crisis and pre-crisis period. As a source of information, the author uses a representative sample of the whole Spanish private sector of 9,086 wage workers, drawn from the 2006 and 2010 waves of the Quality of Life at Work Survey. Findings – Job security and skills utilisation are widely spread in Spain, whilst contingent remuneration and extensive training show low levels of usage. Highly skilled individuals holding high-quality jobs display a greater probability of being affected by HPWP. Similar patterns emerge for employees in large companies and for those in the health and education industries. Research limitations/implications – Design limitations are caused by data that are cross-sectional, not longitudinal. Practical implications – The author is able to reach conclusions that can be generalised for the entire Spanish private sector. Thus, they might be used to propose policy recommendations. Originality/value – This is the first in-depth analysis of HPWP in the Spanish private sector. The results encourage the discussion about the suitability of these practices.

High-performance work practices, socioemotional wealth preservation, and family firm labor productivity*

“…The labor law reform implemented in 2012 aimed to loosen the criteria for “fair” dismissal on economic grounds by extending and clarifying the reasons for employee separations and by establishing severance payments in 20 wage days per seniority year (with the upper limit of one salary year) for (newly hired) permanent workers. In the past, severance payments for unfair dismissals on economic grounds were 45 wage days per seniority year (with the upper limit of 42 salary months) for ordinary open-ended contracts or 33 days (with the upper limit of 42 salary months) for ordinary open-ended contracts or 33 days (with a limit of two salary years) for open-ended contracts which were launched during the 1997 labor market reforms aimed to foster permanent employment (Eichhorst et al, 2017; García-Serrano & Malo, 2013; Pruneda, 2015). Currently, a distinctive feature of labor market in Spain is the high proportion of temporary workers (Latorre et al, 2016).…”

“…Second, the cultural setting and legal framework can also affect the observed relationships and generalizability, since our study was conducted on a sample of family firms in Spain. HPWPs in Spain tend to be used relatively less than those in the United States or the United Kingdom (Pruneda, 2015). This is because Spanish labor law has been undergoing profound changes in response to the economic and financial crises.…”

Organizational justice and turnover intentions: probing the Pakistani print media sector

“…During the performance appraisal reviews, different criteria are evaluated including goal achievement, knowledge, skills, attributes and job-related behaviors. Herriot et al (1998) emphasized on ensuring great value to the integrity of the procedures are being followed in performance appraisal, which ultimately contributes in developing a high morale within employees and help to improve their performance (Pruneda, 2015). In contrast, a lack of fairness in performance evaluation and feedback procedures is likely to lower the trust level and may even lead to dysfunctional conflict (Konovsky and Cropanzano, 1991).…”