**3. Green human resources management practices**

Since the objectives in GHRM implementations aim to make human resources conscious about environment, to reduce carbon footprint of companies, and to motivate employees to improve their environmental performance, the absence of the implementations of these objectives causes problems in some companies. In such businesses, it is impossible to create an environment-conscious culture and an understanding mindful of environment. With GHRM practices, a business intends to improve productivity, minimize the risks, and protect the interests of shareholders [8].

Wehrmeyer [11] expressed the significance of human resources management in environmental management, significance of employee participation in environmental performance, the complex nature of environmental problems requiring specific analytical and communication skills, and the emergence of environmental management from the needs of cooperation and communication among the entire functions of the organizations. Wehrmeyer [11] described the most significant role of human resources in environmental management as supporting the environmental activities of the organization and classified inter-related human resources functions under two categories including environmental human resources management (EHRM) and environmental management activities [3]. These functions are authorized staff recruitment, staff management, and supporting organizational dynamics (**Table 2**).

Renwick et al. [23] described environmental management as a dimension of human resources management, approached it within the frame of the Ability-Motivation-Opportunity theory (AMO Theory), and grouped GHRM functions under development of green abilities, motivation of green employees, and providing green opportunities (**Table 3**). Razab et al. [27] revealed that environmental consciousness of the businesses was shaped around human resources activities involving entire employees and classified these functions under four


**Table 2.** GHRM functions.

Zoogah indicated that GHRM makes the human resources practice, philosophy, and policies sustainable business sources [30]; similarly, Ahmad [26] illustrated that GHRM brings the human resources policies into force allowing the sustainable use of resources in every job/ process of the business. With another perspective, Mandip [20] and Mishra et al. [21] defined GHRM as the implementations that support environmentalist activities and improve employee consciousness and commitments for environmental sustainability. Besides providing improved efficiency like reduced cost and employee commitment, and improved organizational outcomes, the green human resource management practices include the implementations that reduce the carbon footprint of the business. Then, Mishra et al. [21] defined green human resource management as an innovative process that includes human-related technological innovations and developments. GHRM involves human-related technology advancements and mainly includes initiatives like car-pooling, job-sharing, teleconferencing and virtual interviews, recycling, telecommuting, online training and optimally utilizing the energy-efficient office spaces, etc.

As a result, green human resource management can be defined as the triggering force of the human resource implementations that improves both economic and environmental sustainability of business resources by undertaking change and developing environmental conditions.

Since the objectives in GHRM implementations aim to make human resources conscious about environment, to reduce carbon footprint of companies, and to motivate employees to improve their environmental performance, the absence of the implementations of these objectives causes problems in some companies. In such businesses, it is impossible to create an environment-conscious culture and an understanding mindful of environment. With GHRM practices, a business intends to improve productivity, minimize the risks, and protect the interests of shareholders [8].

Wehrmeyer [11] expressed the significance of human resources management in environmental management, significance of employee participation in environmental performance, the complex nature of environmental problems requiring specific analytical and communication skills, and the emergence of environmental management from the needs of cooperation and communication among the entire functions of the organizations. Wehrmeyer [11] described the most significant role of human resources in environmental management as supporting the environmental activities of the organization and classified inter-related human resources functions under two categories including environmental human resources management (EHRM) and environmental management activities [3]. These functions are authorized staff

recruitment, staff management, and supporting organizational dynamics (**Table 2**).

Renwick et al. [23] described environmental management as a dimension of human resources management, approached it within the frame of the Ability-Motivation-Opportunity theory (AMO Theory), and grouped GHRM functions under development of green abilities, motivation of green employees, and providing green opportunities (**Table 3**). Razab et al. [27] revealed that environmental consciousness of the businesses was shaped around human resources activities involving entire employees and classified these functions under four

**3. Green human resources management practices**

164 Corporate Governance and Strategic Decision Making

headings as recruitment and selection, training and development, performance management system, and waging and rewarding. Mandip [20], Sheopuri and Sheopuri [25], and Mohd-Yusoff and Mohd-Yusoff [24] pointed out that environmental activities of HRM consist of major component of social responsibility of the businesses and assessed these activities within



Source: Arulrajah et al. [28, pp. 3–9].

**Table 3.** Developing green abilities.

the framework of recruitment of environment-conscious employees under the functions of performance management system, training and development, employee participation, conflict and discipline, wage and reward system and appreciation. While Uddin and İslam [31] and Ahmad [26] classified GHRM functions under five categories as green recruitment, green performance management, green training and development, green waging, and green industrial relations, Deshwal [22] added personnel management, ability management, success, and career management to these functions, and thus classified them under eight groups. Arulrajah et al. [28] carried out a review study on the current green human resource practices and gathered these practices under several categories as green job analysis and design, green human resource planning, green recruitment, green selection, green induction, green performance assessment, green training and development, green rewarding system, green job safety, green discipline management, and green employee relations. Below, the GHRM functions were considered within the frame of Ability-Motivation-Opportunity theory (AMO Theory) of Renwick et al. [23] as developing green abilities, motivation of green employees, and providing green opportunities.

#### **3.1. Developing green abilities: attracting and developing talented staff**

Development of green abilities attracts environment-conscious and qualified labor force, develops these employees with proper training programs, and places them in a position in which they are able to provide positive organizational outcomes and value-added to the business. At this point, the first step for environmental sustainability is the recruitment and selection of environment-conscious employees.

Businesses should pay special attention to recruitment and selection of employees to work with and with whom they share their vision, mission, objectives, and values. Thus, the activities of the companies are important for the attraction and promotion of conscious employees who have comprehended the environmental objectives and targets of the business well. In this sense, businesses tend to the practices that include job analysis, job design, human resources planning, recruitment, and selection, and then target the training and development of employees.

The objective of training is to let the employees to have certain knowledge, skill, and behaviors and to use all these knowledge in daily activities [1]. Businesses provide environmental knowledge and skills that are necessary for the employees through environmental training programs [6]. Training expresses the effort/efforts planned by the business to ease the learning process of the job-related skills. Such skills involve analytic information, and skills or behaviors for a successful business performance.

Training activities are significant in that they are accepted as the indicator of environmental consciousness. Continuous and publicized trainings significantly influence the public image of the organizations in terms of environmental performance [15].

Success of environmental management systems primarily depends on the consciousness of employees about environmental protection and their comprehension of their role and responsibilities within this process [4]. Special training programs including environmental issues may provide several benefits in defining organizational responsibilities of employees, in creating a positive organizational image, and in providing active participation of employees in environmental management practices [15]. Besides, compliance with legal regulations and laws is also supplied through training practices. In a review study, Arulrajah et al. [28] specified GHRM practices and those that are related to developing green abilities are provided below (**Table 3**).

the framework of recruitment of environment-conscious employees under the functions of performance management system, training and development, employee participation, conflict and discipline, wage and reward system and appreciation. While Uddin and İslam [31] and Ahmad [26] classified GHRM functions under five categories as green recruitment, green

Indicating or making organizations' environmental performance (past and current) transparent in

Including the environmental policy and strategies of the organization in its recruitment policy. Expressing certain environmental values (e.g. be a part of the green team of ABC or we are socially

Expressing the preference of the organization to recruit the candidates who have competency and willingness to participate in corporate environmental management initiatives in the recruitment

Asking questions related to environmental issues in the recruitment interviews or in evaluating the

Selecting the applicants who have been engaging in greening as consumers in their private life.

Making the new employees familiar with greening efforts of the organization and encourage them

Developing induction programs showing green citizenship behavior of current employees.

Providing environmental training to the organizational members (employees and managers) to

Providing training to learn or adapt environmental-friendly best practices (e.g. reducing long-

Imparting right knowledge and skills about greening (to each employee through a training

Conducting a serious and systematic training program which is given to each employee for the purpose of giving the necessary knowledge, skills, and attitudes for good environmental

Analyzing and identifying environmental training needs of employees in order to make them more

Providing opportunities to everybody to get training on the aspect of environmental management.

Providing training to create "environmental awareness" among the workforce.

Conducting training needs analyses to identify green training needs of employees.

Providing training to the staff to produce green analysis of work space. Applying of job rotation to train green managers of the future.

**Developing green abilities**

Green recruitment

Green induction

Green training and development **Practices**

166 Corporate Governance and Strategic Decision Making

announcement.

candidates.

Providing general green induction. Providing job-specific green induction.

develop required skills and knowledge.

distance business travel and recycling).

program exclusively designed for greening).

environmental concerned.

management.

Source: Arulrajah et al. [28, pp. 3–9].

**Table 3.** Developing green abilities.

to engage in green interpersonal citizenship behavior.

Providing environmental education to the workforce.

the publication of recruitment announcements.

Becoming a green employer or green employer of choice.

Including environmental criteria in the recruitment announcements. Asking the employer's concern about greening through recruitment efforts.

Green selection Considering candidates' environmental concern and interest as a selection criterion.

and environmentally responsible) in the job advertisements of the company.

Selecting the applicants who are sufficiently aware of greening for the job vacancies.

#### **3.2. Motivating green employees**

Employee motivation through rewarding and performance management practices is among the primary functions of GHRM. A well-designed rewarding system is a significant tool to orient employees toward environment-conscious practices. Monetary rewards or publicity for every kind of activities improving environmental performance promotes employees to take environment-related responsibilities and to keep the best practices [1]. Conscious attitudes of executives on environmental issues will also have great impacts on management practices and especially on the behaviors of employees. Each and every implementation ranging from decision making to organizational targets, from employment policies to training and development policies, from business ethics to social responsibility, all are realized under the inspection of executives. The more the executives adopt environmental practices, the more the human resources get conscious about environment and actively engage in green movement along with organizational policies and stay motivated.

The relationships between environmental consciousness and economic success of the business constitute the bases of environmental management system, and the attitudes of executives deeply influence these relations [32]. Executives have the authority to allocate funds to environmental management and thus they have significant influences on medium-level executive since they frequently meet with environmental problems each day and on the other staff with an influence on business activities and processes effecting environment. Support of executives may require the following factors [15]:


Beside the support of executives in environmental issues, *commitment* also constitutes a significant component. Commitment comes to the forefront in environment-conscious attitudes not only of executives, but also of all employees.

Renwick et al. specified GHRM practices that motivate the employees as follows [33]:


Performance management practices imply all kind of goods, services, and ideas to achieve pre-specified task and objectives along with business targets. Objectives and such practices also constitute a significant component of employee motivation. The objective herein is to assess environmental performance standards of employees, their participation in environmental friendly business activities, new idea and projects and feedback which are provided for existing problems and to provide new objectives and methods if necessary. Green performance assessment includes the assessments of environmental accidents and performance of environmental responsibilities, environmental issues, and policies [11].

Additionally, establishing environmental management information system (EMIS) and environmental audits, incorporating corporate environmental management objectives and targets with the performance evaluation system of the organization, installing corporatewide environmental performance standards, integrating green criteria in appraisals or evaluating employee's job performance according to green-related criteria, including a separate component for progress on greening in the performance feedback interview, providing regular feedback to the employees or teams to achieve environmental goals or improve their environmental performance, and introducing or formally evaluating all employees' green job performance are included in environmental assessments for GHRM practices [28].

#### **3.3. Providing green opportunities**

**3.2. Motivating green employees**

168 Corporate Governance and Strategic Decision Making

ment along with organizational policies and stay motivated.

executives may require the following factors [15]:

• Overview of environmental management processes.

not only of executives, but also of all employees.

• Monetary-based: bonuses, cash, and premiums.

• Non-monetary-based: sabbatical and leave gifts.

• Positive rewards in environmental management: feedback.

Employee motivation through rewarding and performance management practices is among the primary functions of GHRM. A well-designed rewarding system is a significant tool to orient employees toward environment-conscious practices. Monetary rewards or publicity for every kind of activities improving environmental performance promotes employees to take environment-related responsibilities and to keep the best practices [1]. Conscious attitudes of executives on environmental issues will also have great impacts on management practices and especially on the behaviors of employees. Each and every implementation ranging from decision making to organizational targets, from employment policies to training and development policies, from business ethics to social responsibility, all are realized under the inspection of executives. The more the executives adopt environmental practices, the more the human resources get conscious about environment and actively engage in green move-

The relationships between environmental consciousness and economic success of the business constitute the bases of environmental management system, and the attitudes of executives deeply influence these relations [32]. Executives have the authority to allocate funds to environmental management and thus they have significant influences on medium-level executive since they frequently meet with environmental problems each day and on the other staff with an influence on business activities and processes effecting environment. Support of

• Communication about knowledge, plan, and policies required for employees,

• Authorizing and rewarding employees for well behaviors and implementations,

Renwick et al. specified GHRM practices that motivate the employees as follows [33]:

• Recognition-based: awards, dinners, publicity, external roles, and daily praise.

tem, and connecting the participation in green initiatives with career gains.

Beside the support of executives in environmental issues, *commitment* also constitutes a significant component. Commitment comes to the forefront in environment-conscious attitudes

• Personal rewards: Gain green citizenship, connecting suggestion scheme with rewards sys-

Performance management practices imply all kind of goods, services, and ideas to achieve pre-specified task and objectives along with business targets. Objectives and such practices

• Promotion of cultural exchanges in activity and implementations,

The very basic condition for implementation of GHRM and environmental sustainability is adoption and internalization of environmental issues by the entire business. In this sense, it is quite significant to provide the participation and contribution of all employees, from the lowest to highest position, in to the environmental program. Identification of employee attitudes toward environmental issues and turning them into positive behaviors will ease environmental management. Getting the recommendations, expectations, complaints, and ideas of employees on environmental issues [23, 33], increasing their task and authorities, including environmental issues in their job contracts, identification of environmental programs and policies, and announcing them within the organization, creation of green teams will all motivate employees to actively participate in the environmental management. The practices that help to motivate green employees are summarized in **Table 4**.

Authorization on employees basically means transfer of authority by the management instead of keeping it in its hand. In other words, authorization can be expressed as allowing employees to communicate about the business problems and assigning them responsibilities with opportunities related to the subject. In this way, employees will be empowered and allowed to participate in decision-making process and to generate ideas. There are several benefits of employee authorization in businesses [15]:


Empowerment of employees first of all prevents them from being a source of pollution. In other words, in an organization that is able to dissipate environmental consciousness to the lowest level, empowered employees as the individuals who know their tasks well will better assess the

Source: Renwick et al. [23, p. 9].

**Table 4.** Summary of GHRM practices.

environmental impacts of their tasks and take measures accordingly. Finally, number of knowledgeable employees who prevent pollution and provide solutions is increasing, thus environmental performance of businesses is improving [1]. Thus, qualified human resources have been created.

Team work covers the implementations allowing performance and synergetic corporation of employees along with their abilities. Team work is related to multi-dimensional practices performed in collaboration with common objectives and targets. The teams that are composed of environment-conscious individuals (generally expressed as green teams) are the units created by different groups, individuals, or organizations gathered around various environmental issues and objectives [34]. These teams identify environmental problems, assess them from different perspectives, use a strong communication for the solution of problems, and get together to provide the best solution. Green teams provide several benefits to businesses [34, 35] as follows:


environmental impacts of their tasks and take measures accordingly. Finally, number of knowledgeable employees who prevent pollution and provide solutions is increasing, thus environmental performance of businesses is improving [1]. Thus, qualified human resources have been

**Developing green abilities Motivating green employees Providing green opportunities**

• Green performance indicators included in performance management system and appraisals • Communication of green schemes to all levels of staff through PMA scheme, establishing firm-wide dialogue on green matters • Managers/employees are given green targets, goals, and

*Employee involvement*

Engagement

• EI practices in EM including newsletters, suggestion schemes, problem-solving groups, low carbon champions, and green action teams Empowerment and

• Encouraging employees to make suggestions for EM improvements • Increasing employees' psychological empowerment enhances their willingness to make suggestions

• Supportive managerial and supervisor behaviors develop employee

• Wider EI in EM underpins proenvironment culture Union role in

• EM education programs for union

• Joint management/union training programs in EM—Green union

for EM improvements

engagement in EM *Supportive climate/culture*

EI and EM

members

representatives

• Managers are given objectives on achieving green outcomes included in appraisals

• Dis-benefits in performance management system for non-compliance/not meeting EM goals

• Staff suggestions rewarded in EM • Reward schemes linked to staff gaining EM skills via skill-based

• Green benefits (transport/travel) rather than pay benefits cards to

• Financial/tax incentives (bicycle loans, use of less polluting cars) • Monetary-based EM reward

• Monthly managerial bonuses for

• Including green targets as part of

• Recognition-based rewards in EM for staff (public recognition, awards, paid vacations, time off,

PRP for senior staff • Executive compensation for managers partly based on EM

gain green products

*Performance management*

responsibilities

*Pay and reward systems*

payment

system

good EM

stewardship

gift certificates)

created.

*Attracting/selecting*

descriptions

organizations

*Training & development*

expertise.

in EM

• Employee training in EM to increase awareness, skills, and

• Training for green jobs and integrated training to create an emotional involvement in EM— Trade union representatives get information on EM and union

activist EM training

• Green knowledge management using employees' tacit knowledge

• Training workshops for managers—Green MBAs • Green leadership style

Source: Renwick et al. [23, p. 9].

**Table 4.** Summary of GHRM practices.

• Green issues specified in job

170 Corporate Governance and Strategic Decision Making

• Green job candidates, applicants use green criteria to select

• Green employer branding (green employer of choice)

• Firms recruit employees who are "Green aware"—Green issues in induction /socialization processes


Green teams inform employees about deeply identification, comprehension, and assessment of environmental issues in businesses and guide them in finding solutions for these problems in a collaboration and coordination.
