We revisit Karen Legge's (2001) critique of HRM in which she argues that the attempt of modernist/positivist HRM research to show that HRM improves organizational performance is a 'spent round'. We note that despite spirited challenges by Legge and others, the discourse of HRM is becoming...

Most work on high-performance work systems has examined only the direct relationship between a set of management practices and performance outcomes. This presumes that any connection operates through the incentive and motivational effects captured as 'high-commitment' or 'high-involvement'...

In spite of the growing body of research on high performance work systems (HPWS), there is little evidence on their application in the service sector. It is commonly argued, however, that occupational segmentation in services is a barrier to HPWS. Analysis of data from aged-care workers...

Recent Australian federal governments have responded to broadening global markets and expanding international trade with policies of deregulation, labour market reform and industrial relations decentralization. This has thrown up major challenges for unions across the board, but the differential...

Positive accounts of teamwork emphasise its potential not just to improve organisational performance, but to transform employees' experience of work in overwhelmingly positive ways. The key outcome is said to be enhanced employee discretion, which in turn contributes to satisfaction, commitment...

The shift of an industrial relations system from the centralised settlement of pay and work conditions to the encouragement of enterprise-level bargaining presents industrial relations actors with the opportunity to influence the organisation of work in one of two ways. Drawing on a range of...

The aim of this paper is to assess the validity of the `empowerment thesis': the belief that new forms of work organisation are overturning traditional managerial structures and returning control to employees. Specifically, the project seeks to explore the role of `empowering' forms of work...

This article considers the possibility that'high performance work system' (HPWS) practices generate positive outcomes for employees by meeting their interests (specifically their interest in an orderly and predictable working environment). Utilising survey data on employees working in the...