Aino Tenhiälä, Anne Linna, Monika von Bonsdorff, Jaana Pentti, Jussi Vahtera, Mika Kivimäki and Marko Elovainio
The aim of this paper is to study age-related differences in how perceptions of two forms of organizational justice, i.e. procedural and interactional justice, are related to…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this paper is to study age-related differences in how perceptions of two forms of organizational justice, i.e. procedural and interactional justice, are related to short (i.e. non-certified) spells and long (i.e. medically certified) spells of sickness absence.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted a study on a large sample of Finnish public sector employees (n=37,324), in which they matched employees' 2004 survey data with their records-based sick absences in 2005 and 2006.
Findings
The results suggest that age moderates the association between perceptions of procedural justice and long sickness absences after controlling for gender, tenure, occupational group, work unit, job demands and health behaviors. When older employees experienced a high level of procedural justice, they were 12 percent less likely to miss work due to medically certified illnesses. Overall, older employees were less likely to take short, non-certified sickness absences from work. Finally, the results suggest that high-quality relationships with supervisors can prevent both short and long spells of sickness absence at all ages
Originality/value
The study contributes to the literature on age-related differences in the effects of psychosocial workplace conditions (organizational justice) on employee behavior (absenteeism).
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Keywords
Riitta Viitala, Jussi Tanskanen and Risto Säntti
– The purpose of this paper is to examine the connections between organizational climate and well-being at work.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the connections between organizational climate and well-being at work.
Design/methodology/approach
Connections between perceived organizational climate and well-being at work were studied through quantitative data gathered from 24 public day-care centers in Finland.
Findings
The unit-level analyses revealed that different types of organizational climates were connected to different types of job well-being in the unit. Organizational climate types were differentially connected to stress and cynicism, but were not connected to work engagement. Employees in units where work climate was collectively evaluated as particularly weak reported significantly lower well-being than those in units with better work climate. The most positive climates – “relaxed and friendly” and “encouraging and supportive of new ideas” – seemed to be more strongly connected to well-being than negative climates.
Originality/value
The study confirmed and clarified the link between organizational climate and job well-being and emphasized how different climate types have varying types of connection to well-being at work.
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Liisa Mäkelä, Barbara Bergbom, Jussi Tanskanen and Ulla Kinnunen
The purpose of this paper is to study well-being among the internationally mobile work force by exploring the relationships between international business traveling, work-family…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to study well-being among the internationally mobile work force by exploring the relationships between international business traveling, work-family conflict (WFC), and health issues. In this study, these relationships are examined on the basis of the health impairment process of the job demands-resources model. More specifically, the study examines the role of WFC as a mediator between international business travel and sleep problems using a full panel design.
Design/methodology/approach
The data for this study are drawn from Finnish employees whose work involved international business travel (n=868) and who answered two surveys with a one-year time lag.
Findings
The results showed that international business travel in terms of the number of travel days per year, while not predicting sleep problems directly over time, did significantly increase WFC, which in turn increased sleep problems. Thus, WFC functioned as a mediator in the relationship between business travel and subsequent sleep problems.
Practical implications
The results indicate that family-friendly HR policies and practices might help international business travelers (IBTs) reduce levels of WFC, which could in turn protect them from harmful health effects, particularly sleep problems.
Originality/value
The study examines the understudied professional group of IBTs and contributes to the knowledge on their well-being and WFC issues.
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Pekka Valkama, Harald Torsteinsen and Pekka Kettunen
The study examines how introducing joint municipal arm's length bodies (ALBs) into municipal waste management has influenced the preconditions of democratic governance.
Abstract
Purpose
The study examines how introducing joint municipal arm's length bodies (ALBs) into municipal waste management has influenced the preconditions of democratic governance.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors describe and explain the democratic implications of joint municipal agencification by reviewing the perspectives of representative and participative democracy. Through this approach, the authors apply the exit–voice framework developed by Albert Hirschman to highlight the potential roles and rights of citizens. This research includes country case studies of Finland and Norway. The authors analyse and systematize Finnish and Norwegian waste and organizational policies by reviewing national regulatory documents, commentaries and guidance materials to identify the fundamental missions and institutional traditions of the alternative organizational forms of joint ALBs.
Findings
The study findings highlight that joint agencification has an adverse effect on the democratic governance of waste management policy and services even though these are public monopoly services. They also demonstrate that all joint municipal ALBs limit the classic elements of representative democracy in general, and that private-law ALBs limit residents' rights to influence and participate.
Originality/value
This study contributes to local public management studies by applying Hirschman's theory to comparative reviews of joint agencification and ALBs. It revealed the similarities and differences between the different organizational forms of joint ALBs applied in Finland and Norway. It also demonstrated how the democratic rights of residents depend on how municipalities collaborate.