Dr Ali Sajjadi

We examine the effect of Right-to-Work (RTW) laws on employee welfare using the stacked difference-in-differences (DiD) methodology. We posit that RTW laws weaken collective bargaining power, increase free-riding, and ultimately reduce employee welfare. We document a significant employee welfare decline following RTW adoption, especially among firms in highly unionized industries. The deterioration is driven by reductions in employee involvement, profit-sharing, and work-life-balance provisions. Results remain robust to alternative specifications, local unobservables, endogeneity concerns, and multiple identification checks. Overall, our findings highlight important implications for policymakers, labour unions, and employers considering the broader consequences of RTW legislation.

Based on small firm statistic from DTI research in the UK (1998) more than 9,418,000 people are working in small firms with less than 50 employees, 2,544,000 people are working in medium size companies with less than 250 employees and 9,112,000 people are working in large companies with more than 250 employees. Although Small Medium Enterprises are providing more jobs in the society in compare to large organisations their investment in training programme is considerably less than large organisations. According to Cambridge Business Research Centre (1998) only 41% of people who are working in the small businesses with less than 50 employees are going to external training courses and most of these people are the business managers not the normal employees. This ratio is 57% for companies with 50 to 100 employees, 66% for companies with 100 to 250 employees and 81% for companies with more than 250 employees. Although the external training courses are not necessarily the most effective method of training they are obviously one of the most costly methods and these statistics are proving that Small Medium Enterprises are significantly investing less money in their human resources in compare to large organisations. This issue will become more severe when we realise that those small firms which are investing less in their human resources have got considerably higher failure rate in compare to the bigger firms. This importance is sometimes neglected in the Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) (Storey, 2007) Westhead and Storey (1997) have concluded that employees in small organisations have less chance for training opportunities in compare to people in large organisations. They have provided two explanations for this situation; the first one is “Ignorance” which is saying business owners are not aware of the impact of Human Resource Development (HRD) programmes on their business results and they do not believe in the benefits of these investments.

Purpose The “Germanwings” air crash in 2015 in which 150 people were killed highlighted the challenges pilots working in the aviation industry face. Pilots regularly work for extensive periods in inhospitable and high-pressure operational conditions, exposing them to considerable work-related stress. This has raised calls for a more systemic cultural change across the aviation industry, championing a more holistic perspective of pilot health and well-being. The study aims to explore how peer coaching (PC) can promote an inclusive psychosocial safety climate enhancing pilot well-being and can mitigate hazardous attitudes and dysfunctional behaviours. Design/methodology/approach Adopting an interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA), semi-structured interviews and questionnaires were conducted with military and civilian peer coach/coachee pilots and key industry stakeholders, totalling 39 participants. The research provided significant insights into the perceived value of PC in promoting both pilot health and mental well-being (MW) and flight safety across the aviation industry. Findings The study highlights four key PC superordinate themes, namely, coaching skills, significance of well-being, building of peer relationships and importance of confidentiality and autonomy. Such combined themes build reciprocal trust within peer conversations that can inspire engagement and effectively promote personal well-being. The contagious effect of such local interventions can help stimulate systemic cultural change and promote a positive psychosocial safety climate throughout an organisation and, in this case, across the aviation industry. This study provides a PC conceptual framework “Mutuality Equality Goals Autonomy Non-evaluative feedback, Skill Confidentiality Voluntary Supervisory (MEGANS CVS),” highlighting the salient features of PC in promoting MW. Research limitations/implications The study highlights the salient features of PC and its role in promoting peer conversations that enable personal transition, openness and acceptance. This study also highlights how PC and well-being can be used to encourage inclusivity and engagement, thereby strengthening institutional resilience. Practical implications This study highlights how PC that can assist HRM/HRD professionals to embed a more inclusive and salutogenic approach to MW that can reshape organisational cultures. This study highlights the significance and link of workplace stress to hazardous attitudes and dysfunctional behaviours. It further notes that whilst the MEGANS CVS peer coaching framework has been applied to pilots, it can also be applied across all sectors and levels. Social implications This study highlights the value of PC as an inexpensive means to engage at the grassroots level, which not only improves personal performance, safety and well-being but by building peer relationships can also act as a catalyst for positive and deep organisational cultural change. Originality/value This study offers the MEGANS CVS framework that exposes insights into PC practice that can assist HRM/HRD professionals embed a more inclusive and salutogenic approach to health and well-being that can reshape organisational cultures. This study highlights the significance and link of workplace stress to hazardous attitudes and dysfunctional behaviours, and whilst this framework has been applied to pilots, it can also have relevance across all sectors and levels. This study calls for a “salutogenic turn,” employing MW and PC to transform organisational capabilities to be more forward-thinking and solution-focused, promoting an inclusive “just culture” where leaders positively lead their people.