Solidarity in Action at a Time of Crisis: The Role of Employee Voice in Relation to Communication and Horizontal Solidarity Behaviour

Abstract

Solidarity behaviour (SB) among employees is important in building a sense of community in organizations, particularly within a crisis context where adverse working conditions prevail. However, we have limited knowledge concerning how SB develops. Using the lens of social exchange theory, this study examines how top-down communication and employee voice relate to horizontal (employee to emplCoyee) SB. We conducted two comprehensive studies during the Greek economic crisis and found that the relationship between top-down employee communication and horizontal SB is mediated by employee voice. The paper extends our existing knowledge in the fields of management and human resource management by advancing our understanding of horizontal SB, highlighting the role of top-down employee communication as an effective human resource practice and delineating the role of employee voice in fostering workplace camaraderie in small and medium-sized enterprises under crisis.

Theorising the impact of macroturbulence on work and HRM: COVID‐19 and the abrupt shift to enforced homeworking

“…Boundary theory can be applied to examine changing physical, temporal, and psychological work‐life boundaries (Delanoeije et al., 2019). However, it lacks a focus on the nature of social exchange relationships and individual perceptions of obligations and expectations, which SET provides (Blau, 1964; Cropanzano et al., 2017; Prouska et al., 2022). As shown in Figure 2, we identify a range of social exchanges and boundaries that cut across the work‐life interface at different levels.…”

“…( 2020 ) and Prouska et al. ( 2022 ) who found that co‐workers engaged in social exchanges to support each other, navigate changing working conditions and mitigate macroturbulence in Cyprus and Greece. Thus, as social exchanges extend beyond dyadic employment relations, particularly when working from home, we adopted SET in this paper because it provides a broader and more inclusive framework than the psychological contract.…”

“…Research engaging with SET in the context of macroturbulence has primarily analysed dyadic social relationships between employers and/or managers and the people they employ or manage, in some cases focussing on the psychological contract as a strand of SET (e.g., Huffman et al, 2021). Exceptions would include Nyfoudi et al (2020) and Prouska et al (2022) who found that co-workers engaged in social exchanges to support each other, navigate changing working conditions and mitigate macroturbulence in Cyprus and Greece. Thus, as social exchanges extend beyond dyadic employment relations, particularly when working from home, we adopted SET in this paper because it provides a broader and more inclusive framework than the psychological contract.…”

Managerial coaching skill and team performance: How does the relationship work and under what conditions?

“…Thus, the findings may not be directly replicable in differing settings, including virtual and globally distributed teams. Future studies may need to account for important factors in such contexts, including disruptive exigencies (Biron et al., 2020; Prouska et al., 2022). Furthermore, multicultural teams are highly prevalent, especially in large organisations and cross‐cultural differences may lead to contradicting expectations and behaviours (Yaconi, 2001).…”

Advancing understanding of HRM in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs): critical questions and future prospects

“…There is much to explore here, including the impact of the Covid pandemic in fostering a sense of allegiance or reinforcing transience (e.g. Prouska, Nyfoudi, Psychogios, Szamosi, & Wilkinson, 2022). Critically, for all its prospective benefits in a smaller firm context, informality can also serve as a double edge sword enabling and perpetuating exclusion and discrimination.…”