Green HRM

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What is Green HRM?

Green HRM as the integration of environmental management into human resources management.
The term green HRM is mostly used to refer to the contribution of HRM policies and practices towards
the broader corporate environmental agenda.
It refers to using every employee to support sustainable practices and increase employee awareness and
commitments on the issue of sustainability.
Anjana Nath defines Green HR as environment-friendly HR initiatives leading to better efficiencies, less
cost and heightened employee engagement levels.

It involves undertaking environment-friendly HR initiatives resulting in greater efficiencies, lower costs


and better employee engagement and retention, which in turn, help organizations to reduce employee
carbon footprints by the likes of electronic filing, car-sharing, job-sharing, teleconferencing, and virtual
interviews, recycling, telecommuting, online training, energy-efficient office spaces, etc.
Green HR initiatives help companies find alternative ways to cut costs without losing their top talent.
Focus on Green HRM as a strategic initiative promotes sustainable business practices.
Developing a green culture can affect employee behavior and introduce certain values that build an
internal culture.

Benefits/Advantages of Green HRM


Green HRM involves undertaking environment-friendly HR initiatives resulting in greater efficiency,
lower costs and better employee engagement and retention, which in turn, help organizations to reduce
employee carbon footprints by electronic filing, car sharing, job sharing, teleconferencing and virtual
interviews, recycling, telecommuting, online recruitment and training, energy-efficient office spaces, etc.
The Green Human Resource Management plays an important role in the industry to promote the
environment-related issues.
Experts have identified the benefits of GHRM, which are mentioned below:
1. Helping companies to bring down costs without losing their talent.
2. Organizations have huge growth opportunities by being green and creating a new friendly
environment which helps in enormous operational savings by reducing their carbon footprint.
3. It helps in achieving higher employee job satisfaction and commitment which leads to higher
productivity and sustainability.
4. Create a culture of having concern for the wellbeing and health of fellow workers.
5. Improvement in the retention rate of the employee.
6. Improved public image. Any time a firm adds a green initiative to its workplace, it can use the
event to generate positive public relations. Organizations can promote environmental contributions to the
media through press releases to earn the attention of potential customers and possible new sales.
7. Promote employee morale.
8. Improvement in attracting better employees. Dolan’s (1997) study of USA MBA students found
that most of the graduates would take a lower salary to work for environmentally responsible
organizations.
9. Reduction in the environmental impact of the company.
10. Improved competitiveness and increased overall performance.
11. Reduction of utility costs significantly. Even small businesses can significantly reduce their
utility costs by using technologies that are energy-efficient and less wasteful.
12. Rebates and Tax Benefits. Going green is easier with the assistance of governments, local
municipalities, Water supply authority, and electric companies that offer tax incentives and rebates.
13. Increased business opportunities. Some government agencies, commercial businesses, and
nonprofit institutions mandate that only businesses that meet specific green standards can bid on their
contracts. Some also mandate that their purchasing departments only buy green products or use products
and services sold by companies that meet certain green standards.
14. Reduction of environmental damage. Encouraging employees, through training and compensation
to find ways to reduce the use of environmentally damaging materials.

Disadvantages of GHRM
While environmentally friendly living is a positive ideal, there are several possible disadvantages of going
green. Gregory Hamel has made a review of the disadvantages if an organization is going green.
The major disadvantages are listed below;
 Initial costs.
 Inadequate savings.
 Increased capital outlays.
 Uneven competition.
 Marginal impact.
 Employee apathy and reluctance.
Initial costs
Perhaps the greatest disadvantage of going green is that it often requires a large initial cost.
For example, installing a new roof or new insulation to keep heat from escaping our home would be
considered a green home improvement, but it would cost a large sum of money to get the work done.
Inadequate savings
The aim of going green in many cases, such as building an energy-efficient home or purchasing a
hybrid^vehicle is to reduce environmental impact while saving money in the long term.
Green buildings and vehicles tend to use less energy, so initial costs can often be recouped over time
through energy savings.
Increased capital outlays
Some green conversions require an initial cash outlay that decreases the firm’s bottom-line performance
while the investment is paying for itself. This can decrease the earnings or annual profits of a firm.
Uneven competition
In the business world, going green can be an attractive goal to gain goodwill and consumer support, but
unless green improvements are economically viable, it can put a business at a competitive disadvantage.
For instance, if one company decides to adhere to strict, self-imposed pollution standards which require
the installation of new technology and workers, while another sets loose standards, the second company
will be at an advantage since they will have lower production costs.
Marginal impact
While going green is focused on reducing harm to the environment, the impact that any specific
individual can have on the environment by going green is often negligible.
The theory is that if everyone were to go green, it would have a significant and noticeable impact, but not
everyone can be convinced to go green and many believe that doing so has no real impact outside of the
economics. This makes going green a personal choice for many.
Employee apathy and reluctance
Many employees feel that it is not their responsibility to protect the environment while they are at work.
But the newly educated workforce is emphasizing on environmental management consciousness when
they choose their employers,
How to Implement Green HRM
Jabbour and Santos (2008) consider HRM may contribute to environmental management in companies if
they:
a. recruit and select people committed to the environment;
b.train and evaluate employees’ performance based on environmental criteria;
c. implement ways of rewarding individual and collective environmental performance is remunerated and
non-remunerated ways;
d.stimulate continuous education in environmental management;
e. treat environmental aspects as values of corporate culture; and
f. promote interaction between teams to deal with environmental problems and strive for continuous
improvement of environmental management activities.

Strategic Aspect of Green HRM


HR plays a vital role in making the environmental responsibility of the organization as a part of the
corporate mission statement.
The responsibility of the HR managers is to create awareness about the Green HRM, the Green
movement, and the utilization of natural resources, helping the corporate to maintain the proper
environment and retain natural resources for future generations among young and working people.
A green job is an employment that directly works with strategies, information, materials, and technologies
that contribute to minimizing environmental impact and requires specialized knowledge, skills, training or
experience in these areas.
According to Zoogah, D. (2010), five major platforms where sustainability principles can be applied in
the transforming an organization to the wholly sustainable enterprise is as follows;
a. “The Green products/services Portfolio” including waste and pollution management, resource
replacement, sustainable design, and adaptive reuse.
b.“The Green Workforce” including Human Resource strategies, culture, recruiting and retention,
training, career path development, and diversity.
c. “The Green Workplace” including global locations, physical plants, ergonomics, virtual workplaces,
green buildings, environmental discharge, waste and energy, use and source.
d.“The Green Function/Process Model” including sustainability applied to traditional functions,
enterprise-wide green process modeling to incorporate green practices and sustainable-management.
e. “Green Management and Governance Principles” including board and management accountability,
sustainability test, compliance, incentives, ethics, reporting, and assurance.
.
The focus of Green HRM concentrates on employee’s environmental behavior in the working place
which in turn employees can practice such kind of behavior in their private life.

Green HR Policies
There is no doubt that organizations are the main cause of environmental problems, they should,
therefore, play a large role in addressing environmental management issues. Bebbington (2001) has
identified a wide range of GHRM practices.
Green HR Policies are;
 Sourcing and acquisition of human resources.
 Green recruitment, and selection.
 Orientation.
 Learning and development.
 Green performance management.
 Green compensation and reward management.
Sourcing and acquisition of human resources
As higher-level executives have more responsibility for green initiatives, green targets should be included
in the managerial job description. As the requirement of employees, environmental consciousness can be
included in the competency model of the organization.
Green recruitment, and selection
Company websites can be used to invite applicants to apply for vacant positions. Resumes can be
submitted online to reduce wastage of printed materials. Companies can also use web portals for
onboarding documentation like offer letter, credentials and testimonials regarding qualifications and
experiences and acceptance letter of selected applicants. Environment-friendly firms receive better
qualified and motivated job applicants. Some applicants are preferred to sacrifice salary potential to work
for environmentally responsible organizations. Some Job descriptions of an announced position and other
information about the company can post on its website which helps in the orientation of the new
employees. An organization can set “Green awareness” as a preferential criterion to select employees.
Firms recruit employees who are green aware.
Orientation
The employee induction program should be planned in such a. way-as to enable the induction of new
employees into a culture of green consciousness. Employers should highlight the concern for green issues
of employees like their health, safety and green working conditions in the orientation program.
Learning and development
Learning, training and development policies can include programs, workshops, and sessions to facilitate
employees for improving and acquiring knowledge in environment management, green skills, and
attitudes. For future talented green managers, job rotation in the green assignment should become an
important part of their career development plan. Training contents should be settled to increase employee
competencies and knowledge in green management. Extensive use of online and web-based training
modules and interactive media can be used as a training tool for environmental management training.
Environment-related aspects of safety, energy efficiency, waste management, and recycling can become
the central points of green training. Training managers should depend more on the online course material
and case studies rather than on printed handouts, thus further reducing the use of paper.
Green performance management
The goal of the Performance management (PM) system in green management is to measure ecological
performance standards through different departments of the organization and achieve useful information
on the green performance of managers. Green performance indicators should be included in the PM
system. Green PM system can be successfully initiated through developing performance indicators for
each risk area in environmental awareness and instruction.
Green compensation and reward management
The compensation package should be adapted to reward green skills acquisition and achievement by
employees. Monetary, nonmonetary and recognition based environmental reward systems and monthly
managerial bonuses can be provided based on performance outcomes in environmental balance.
Employees meeting green goals can be rewarded.

Green HRM Practices


Researchers (Cohen and Taylor, 2010; Ehner, 2009; Behrend, 2009; Philips, 2007) suggest a few Green
HRM practices, which are mentioned below:
1. Encouraging employees, through training and compensation is to find ways to reduce the use of
environmentally damaging chemicals in their products.
2. Assisting employees in identifying ways to recycle products that can be used for playgrounds for
children who don’t have access to healthy places to play.
3. Designing a company’s HRM system is to reflect equity, development, and well¬being, thus
contributing to the long-term health and sustainability of both internal (employees) and external
communities.
4. Emphasizing long-term employment security is to avoid disruption for employees, their families,
and communities.
5. Use of job portals of companies for recruitment and custom of telephone, internet and video
interviews which can lessen the travel requirements of the candidate and affecting the reduction in
paperwork.
6. Green rewards to employees can be provided by companies in the arrangement of the nature-
friendly workplace and lifestyle benefits through providing carbon credit equalizers, free bicycles and
pollution-free vehicles for transportation to the workplace to engage employees in green agenda.
7. Talented, skilled and experienced employees are environmentally conscious now and they always
look for self-actualization to be committed to their work. Green HR can create this commitment by
following green values and practices.
8. Green actions can occur with minimum use of paper and printed materials in recruitment, training
and development, and performance appraisal.
9. A company can create a green business environment by reducing the use of printed materials,
increased’recycling, using eco-friendly grocery and lunch bags and’ prohibiting the use of bottled water,
plastic in the workplace.
10. Luminous light bulbs and other energy-saving green devices can be used in the workplace.
11. Companies can inspire their employees to change their travel and transportation ways through
reducing official car trips, using public transport for business travel, carpooling, providing interest-free
loans to purchase hybrid cars, and cycling or walking to work.
12. Conduct business meetings and conferences through the internet, telephone, and video
conferencing wherever possible to reduce business travel.
13. Provide flexible work opportunities to employees in telework or work from home by using emails
and company portals through intranet and internet.
14. Organizations can arrange cleanliness and waste management initiative in the workplaces and
surrounding society to cause awareness about green issues.
15. Encourage the employee to turn off lights; computers and printers after work hours and on
weekends for further energy reductions.
16. Inspire employees to place computers and printers in energy-saving settings when they will be
away for a while.
17. Turn off office lights while attending meetings and at night and over the weekend. Turn lights off
in restrooms, conference rooms, libraries, and so forth when the room is not in use.
18. Work with IT to switch to laptops over desktop computers because Laptops consume up to 90%
less power.
19. Arrange an air conditioning system with discretion.
20. Purchase large or refillable containers of creamer, sugar, salt, pepper, and butter instead of
individual containers.
21. XII. Arrange green-themed games to promote environmentally friendly behavior and staff
togetherness.
22. Provide green promotion which includes loan discounts on fuel-efficient cars and energy-saving
home improvements, discounts at local green merchants.

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