GREEN HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT: A HOLISTIC REVIEW OF ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY IN HR PRACTICES

Abstract

The issue of environmental sustainability has become a strategic imperative of serious concern to organisations across the globe thus creating an increased interest in such practices which incorporate ecological responsibility into the management systems. The current article provides an in-depth overview of the concept of Green Human Resource Management (GHRM) and the role it plays in advancing the idea of environmental sustainability in the organisational setting. Based on existing literature and recent empirical research, the analysis questions how effective the green recruitment, training, performance management and reward systems are in helping to cultivate environmentally responsible employees, in achieving high ecological results. Results highlight that green behaviour of employees represents the key driver between HR practices and the performance of the organisation through its environmental environment, and that top-management approval and organisational green culture can be used as appropriate moderators that positively influence or limit the effectiveness of GHRM initiatives. Despite the widening of its relevance, the review reveals various gaps in the body of GHRM research, such as a lack of conceptualization, limited empirical data produced in developing nations, and the lack of a common measurement system. Based on this, the study hypothesises a conceptual model integrating behavioural- and organisational-determinants in a bid to explain the mechanisms via which HR practices affect the sustainability outcomes. Overall, the review has come to a conclusion that GHRM is a strategic framework that is holistic in its nature of integrating environmental sustainability in organisational systems and also presents promising research and implementation opportunities in the future.