**2. Literature review**

#### **2.1 Green HRM**

In the past, companies and their shareholders expected good economic performance to guarantee the success of the company; however, this is no longer the case; financial and economical outcomes need to be combined with a reduced ecological footprint and increased attention to social and environmental aspects [41]. Wehrmeyer [42] stated that if a company needs to take an ecological approach to its operations, employees are the key to its success or failure.

GHRM concentrates on using human resource management procedures and guidelines to ensure sustainable resources usage and vigorously boost environmentalism [14]. Thus, through GHRM, the company ensures that employees have a positive attitude toward the environment, have green skills, and are responsible for the environmental consequences of their actions [43].

Given into consideration the above discussion, organizations need to engage in GHRM and build a positive green image and reputation to stay ahead of the competition [37]. Thus, the term of "green HRM" has become the focus of environmental management research and is considered as a hot topic in recent studies [3, 4, 38, 40, 44].

Research studies on ecology based on HRM and environmental management linkage started in the 1990s through the book "Greening people: human resources and environmental management" by Wehrmeyer [42]. Subsequently, GHRM was introduced as a new effective management discipline that integrates environmental management to enhance performance through environmentally friendly management practices [35].

GHRM is most regularly used to refer to the concern of people management policies and practices toward the broader corporate environmental schedule [41]. Ren et al, [28] state that GHRM is an organization's aspiration to design and implement HRM practices, policies, and philosophies to support environmental objectives, promote attitudinal and behavioral change, and improve the environmental performance of the organization. Therefore, management scholars around the world are currently analyzing different management practices that can contribute to the achievement of environmental goals. HR professionals are advised to deploy green cues in traditional HR functions to ensure environmental sustainability [1].

The following subsection provides a summary of emerging GHRM practices for each HRM function.

#### **2.2 Green HRM practices**

In order to ensure that a company achieves appropriate green contributions from its workforce, altering or adapting the HRM functions to be environmentally friendly is essential [21]. It is therefore important to substitute green aspirations and mere good intentions into a real organizational policy.

GHRM practices (GHRMP) are similar to traditional HRM practices as they include recruitment and selection, training and development, performance appraisal and compensation, etc. However, GHRMP ought to lead to the capabilities necessary for the continuous improvement of the firm's environmental performance [45]. Thus, human resource departments play a major role in greening the policies and practices from entry to exit processes such as recruitment and selection, training and development, performance appraisal, rewards, compensation management, and exit policies that are collectively termed GHRMP [46]. Therefore, such green practices help in fulfilling green objectives and in achieving organizational goals throughout HRM process from recruitment to retirement [25].

#### **2.3 Green job analysis and description**

Many companies reported that job analysis enhances administrative efficiency; for this reason, a clear delineation of roles and responsibilities for a given position guarantees that each level of the organizational structure understands its contribution and adds value to the company [47]. From an environmental management perspective, an appropriate job design should follow the principles of environmentally friendly jobs, and each job description should specify environmentally friendly duties and tasks [48]. Thus, the implementation of GHRMP begins with job analysis and design and

emphasizes the importance of incorporating environmental protection responsibilities and duties in each position [33].

#### **2.4 Green recruitment and selection**

According to Wehrmeyer [42], recruitment practices can support environmental management by ensuring that new entrants are familiar with the environmental culture of the organization and are able to uphold its values. Tang et al, [49] define green recruitment as the organization's preference to select candidates who are committed and sensitive to environmental issues and who are willing to contribute. Thus, employees' green tendency should be given attention in recruitment and selection, which is helpful to engage employees in green behaviors, ensure that employees have a positive green attitude, emphasize information about the green agenda in recruitment campaigns, and strive to recruit employees with high environmental behavior [50]. Accordingly, the selection activity for future employees should focus on the overlap between the candidates' environmental values and those of the organizations and should select those who have significant environmental values as part of their daily practices [45]. As stated by Ramasamy [27] and Ullah, [41], creating this culture at the recruitment stage ensures that the new recruits will be well set in pursuing the objective of corporate green policy and are familiar with the words of conservation and sustainable environment.

#### **2.5 Green training and development**

The workforce training has long been identified as an important component in fostering and implementing environmental management practices in an organization [51]. Thus, green training is defined as a specific training provided to employees on power saving management, safety, energy efficiency and supported by softcopy as material rather than printed handouts [16].

Xie et al. [52] has defined green training as a process of continuing education designed to update employees' knowledge and skills, which is exactly what both companies and employees need for sustainable development. Thus, green training is provided to employees in order to improve their environmental awareness and practical operation ability [50].

Indeed, via green training, employees become more receptive to change through the assimilation of the environmental dimension, and they consequently understand the importance of acting proactively [6]. Therefore, enterprises should guide employees to think and handle their work in a more environmentally friendly way while cultivating their professional skills and knowledge [50].

#### **2.6 Green performance appraisal**

According to Bombiak et Marciniuk-Kluska [48], the integration of environmental management objectives into performance appraisal system ensures regular feedback on employee's progress. The green performance assessment can be defined as the process by which employees are prompted to enhance their professional skills that help to achieve the organizational goals and objectives in a better way [53].

Green performance appraisal has different activities such as setting green targets for all members, creating green performance indicators, evaluating employees' green outcomes, and using disbenefits [49]. Accordingly, green performance management

creates green indicators to establish green criteria for all members, covering topics such as environmental incidents, environmental responsibilities, reduction of carbon emissions, and communicating environmental concerns and policies [31].

#### **2.7 Green pay and rewards**

The success of employees in their ecological performance appraisal is the proof that a company's strategic sustainability goals are being mirrored and accomplished from the top to the bottom [53]. Thus, the reward system is meant to be linked to the outcomes of green initiatives to effectively boost pro-environmental behaviors and to reflect company's commitment to environmental performance [22, 23].

Green compensation and benefits can be defined as possible tools for encouraging environmental activities in firms [54]. These compensations include financial rewards (salary increases, cash bonuses, a variable component linking pay to ecoperformance) and nonfinancial rewards (paid excursions, time off, favored stopping, free transport pass, and blessing declarations) [11].

#### **2.8 Green involvement and participation**

The process of decision-making becomes a much simpler task when people are given green opportunities, and the end result would be a competitive workforce with high green values that benefit forward-thinking organizations [46]. Thus, motivated employees equipped with new skills will be likely to be proactive in practicing new values and methods at work and to further learn by engaging in green initiatives, such as introducing new ideas to customers and suppliers on how to reduce their environmental impacts [55].

In this regard, green ideas should be embraced of all employees, regardless of their function, which will encourage their interest in environmental issues and enable them to make the most out of their skills.

#### **2.9 Green discipline management**

In order to ensure compliance with environmental management, organization must develop and communicate a clear set of rules and regulations that require employees to be concerned about environmental protection. Therefore, setting sanctions and disciplinary measures (demotion, lay-off, salary, and allowances reduction) for employees who do not meet their performance requirements will ensure that all employees remain committed to achieving the company's environmental objectives [27].

Maintaining the green discipline in the organization builds and facilitates green employee competence, which contributes toward pro-environmental behaviors. Accordingly, managers should maintain green discipline by punishing employees or fining them for not observing the environmental policy in companies [20]. Thus, organizations can implement a consistent set of rules and regulations that require/ regulate workers to follow the organizations' environmental policies and to be concerned with environmental conservation [13].

#### **2.10 Green health and safety management**

In order to improve employees' health and safety, some organizations have created strategies such as green factory or green zone to maintain a conducive environment

*Green Human Resource Management: An Exploratory Study from Moroccan ISO 14001… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.105565*

to prevent various health problems [12]. Thus, green health and safety cover the old-fashioned health and safety administration and other aspects of a company's environmental management [33]. This position comprises a wider range of activities associated with green initiatives.

In this regard, a better workplace can be made possible through "Green Health and Safety" management practices such as wearing helmet, gloves, and glasses wherever necessary, proper waste management at workplace, etc. [46]. Thus, green health and safety management ensures the implementation of environmental standards that meet national and international regulations and eventually to ensure the safety of not only employees but also customers and other stakeholders [56].
