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Effect of Employee Supportive HR Practices on HR Outcomes: A case

of Dual Career Couples
Prof. Subhash C. Kundu
Professor, Haryana School of Business,
Guru Jambheshwar University of Science and Technology,
Hisar-125001, Haryana (India)

Rina
Research Scholar, Haryana School of Business,
Guru Jambheshwar University of Science and Technology,
Hisar-125001, Haryana (India)

ABSTRACT
The aim of this paper is to show the association which exists among the various supportive HR practices
(development and flexibility, work and organizational culture, reward and financial benefits) and outcomes (career
satisfaction, job satisfaction, intention to leave) in case of dual career couples. The proposed literature review
includes the systematic process of research in the following manner; after identifying the main area of interest, key
concepts and words were selected, parameters were set to ensure selection of good quality journals, and availability
of articles in full text was also considered. The study finds that availability of various supportive HR practices
improves the career and job satisfaction of dual career couples, while on the other side lower the intentions to leave
the organization.

Introduction
In this era, human resources are forced to come out from the mode of cultural comfort, and have to interact with
diverse groups of people who are different from them and also now a days families and employing organizations
throughout the industrialized world are changing fundamentally and rapidly, both in terms of structure and in terms
of expectations. However, work and family policies and practices within organizations and wider societies, and the
values and assumptions which underpin them, are changing more slowly. Albertsen, et.al, 2010 mentioned in his
study that globalization of economic exchanges has created a 24-hour economy that has significantly impacted on
the way work is organized and regulated (Major & Germano, 2006). Indeed during the last century, Denmark, as
well as many other industrialised countries, has undergone several large transitions of working life (Nswall, et.al,
2008). These transitions have involved a high level of organizational changes, reorganizations, downsizing, and
changes in ownership (Olsen, et.al, 2008). Moreover, production systems have shifted away from manufacturing
jobs toward more service-oriented jobs and jobs involving exchange of knowledge (Burr, et.al, 2003; Major &
Germano, 2006). As an overall concept referring to this new working life, the concept of boundaryless work has
been introduced (Allvin, 2008). The failure to reflect and build upon rapid social change poses threats to
occupational health and has far reaching implications for human resources management. Majeed, (2009) quoted in
his study that the expertise and capability of individuals or the accumulation of knowledge within an institute is
referred to as human capital (Barney, 1991; Alvesson, 2000).
Recent decades have witnessed unprecedented changes both in the world economy and in the composition of
workforces internationally, resulting in womens economic activity rates increasing dramatically since the 1970s.
According to a recent report from the International Labour Organization (ILO), more women now work outside the
home than ever before. In 2003, 1.1 billion of the worlds 2.8 billion workers, or 40 percent, were women,
representing a worldwide increase of nearly 200 million women in employment in the past 10 years (ILO, 2004). In
the USA women now represent approximately half of the working population (Cooper and Jackson, 1997), while in
the UK women constitute just over 50 per cent of the total workforce. Despite this rapid increase in female
participation in the paid labour-force, considerable evidence has been gathered that documents a dearth of women in
executive level positions not just in Ireland, but globally. Womens increased involvement in the labour force,
however, is not paralleled within the management levels of organizations. Managing people is not a matter of
manipulation. It is about working with the staff and colleagues (human resources) on a partnership basis to achieve
the strategic goals of the organization (Kermally, 2006) and to make balance between the two domains of their lives
that are family and work.

Purpose of the study

The main objective of the study is to find out the impact of supportive HR practices on workplace outcomes and
work-family of ducal career couples.
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The following were set as sub objective:
I.
How supportive HR practices i.e. development and flexibility, work and organizational culture, reward and
financial benefits affect the performance and work-family conflict.
II.
What are the various outcomes (e.g. career satisfaction, job satisfaction, intention to leave) of supportive
HR practices in case of dual career couples.

Literature Review
Dual-career couples were identified in the late 1960s as an important societal and workplace phenomenon. Such
families were defined as those in which both heads of household pursue careers and at the same time maintain a
family life together (Rapoport and Rapoport, 1971). Dual-career couples were a small minority when Rapoport and
Rapoport apparently coined the term in 1969. The dual-career couple, where both partners are pursuing
simultaneous careers, is a prevalent and lasting phenomenon that reflects the increasing educational achievements
and career aspirations of women worldwide (Davidson, 1987; Sekaran, 1986). Each spouse in a married relationship
is pursuing a career that demands a high level of personal commitment, a constant updating of knowledge, and has a
component of upward mobility. The dual-career title includes women in professions and in trainees skill careers
(Cron, 2001).The dual-career relationship implies a psychological commitment of marital or de facto partners to
both the family relations and their individual careers. This has been hailed the middle-class marital relationship
(Hertz, 1986).

1. HR Practices
Human resource management (HRM) is defined by many authors in many ways e.g. Stone (2005) defined it as [the]
productive use of people for achieving the organizations strategic objectives and the satisfaction of individual
employee needs. (Hartel, et.al, 2007) mentioned in his study that this definition reflects the development of the
HRM literature in the late twentieth century, which saw a shift of focus from the rational administration of
employees to employee motivation and job satisfaction. Som (2008) has conceptualized HRM as carefully designed
combinations of such practices that are geared towards improving organizational effectiveness and hence, better
performance outcomes (Shen and Zhu, 2011).
Diverse workforce (diversity) refers to the co-existence of people from various socio-cultural backgrounds within
the company. Diversity includes cultural factors such as race, gender, age, color, physical ability, ethnicity, etc.
(Kundu, 2004). Dynamic companies look for people who are different from us because the diverse workforce may
bring different talents, interests, and viewpoints (Simmons, 1996). A company with a diverse workforce can better
serve and compete in diverse markets. The basic concept of managing diversity accepts that the workforce consists
of a diverse population of people. The companies can succeed at diversity if the initiative to create and manage the
diverse workforce has the full support from the top management (Hayes, 1999).
Work-life balance is a state where an individual manages real or potential conflict between different demands on
his/her time and energy in a way that satisfies his/her needs for well being and self-fulfillment (Clutterbuck, 2004).
Work-life balance policies define how the organization intends to allow employees greater flexibility in their
working patterns so that they can balance what they do at work with responsibilities and interests they have outside
work (Armstrong, 2005). Employees are increasingly complaining that the line between work and non-work time
has become blurred, creating personal conflicts, and stress (Cappelli et al., 2000; Verespej, 2000; Barnett and Hall,
2001). Todays married employee is typically part of a dual-career couple. This makes it increasingly difficult for
married employees to find the time to fulfill commitments to home, spouse, children, parents, and friends (Robbins,
2004). Employees are increasingly recognizing that work is squeezing out personal lives and theyre not happy
about it. For example, studies suggested that employees want jobs that give them flexibility in their work schedules,
so, they can better manage work/life conflicts (Conlin, 1999). Todays progressive workplace is being modified to
accommodate the varied needs of a diverse workforce. Balance has become the most sought after benefit for the new
millennium. Generation Xers are not that impressed with money as with a balanced lifestyle. Studies have shown
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that organizational commitment is more in organizations adopting family-responsive HR practices (Grover and
Crooker, 1995; Laabs, 1998).

1a. Development and Flexibility

A definition of HRD is "organized learning activities arranged within an organization in order to improve
performance and/or personal growth for the purpose of improving the job, the individual, and/or the organization"
(Gilley and Eggland, 1989). HRD includes the areas of training and development, career development, and
organization development. This is related to Human Resource Management -- a field which includes HR research
and information systems, union/labor relations, employee assistance, compensation/benefits, selection and staffing,
performance management systems, HR planning, and organization/job design (McLagan, 1989). Human Resource
Development (HRD) is the framework for helping employees develops their personal and organizational skills,
knowledge, and abilities. Human Resource Development includes such opportunities as employee training,
employee career development, performance management and development, coaching, mentoring, succession
planning, key employee identification, tuition assistance, and organization development.
HR flexibility refers to the capability to facilitate the organizations ability to adapt effectively and in a timely
manner to changing or diverse demands from either its environment or from within the firm itself (Milliman et al.,
1991: 325). Wright and Snell (1998: 761) conceptualize HR flexibility as the extent to which the firms human
resources possess skills and behavioral repertoires that can give a firm options for pursuing strategic alternatives in
the firms competitive environment, as well as the extent to which the necessary HRM practices can be identified,
developed, and implemented quickly to maximize the flexibilities inherent in those human resources. Workplace
Flexibility defines when, where and how work is done. One of the seven pillars of work-life effectiveness, it is a
critical driver of employee well-being and performance and is responsive to the changing professional and personal
demographics of the multi-generational workforce. Workplace Flexibility Includes compressed workweek, flexitime
and telecommuting. When properly managed Workplace Flexibility can increase productivity, provide extended
coverage, and decrease unplanned absences. In addition, it promotes diversity, cross-training and has a positive
impact on workplace culture, morale and employee recruitment, engagement and retention. Compressed Workweek
is an arrangement in which an employee works her/his full appointment time in less than one week. A full
workweek is condensed into fewer than five days; or two full-time workweeks are compressed into nine or nine and
one-half days. Flexitime is an arrangement that allows an employee to alter the starting and end time of her/his
workday. Telecommuting is an arrangement in which an employee regularly performs work at a remote worksite
(such as home, library or business centre) for a specified portion of the workweek. Organizational flexibility has
recently once more received much attention from researchers, management consultants and practitioners. Intuition
would suggest that organizational flexibility, which roughly means mobility, responsiveness, agility, suppleness or
litheness, is important and desirable.
With growing numbers of dual earner families in most industrialized nations, the daily struggle of combining work
and family can be facilitated by the utilization of work family policies offered by governments or employers.
Dikkers, et.al, 2010 found in their study that in addition to part-time work, which is very common in The
Netherlands and almost in every developing country, the national government and employers have implemented
other so-called family-friendly or work-home arrangements beyond reduced hours in order to assist employees in
combining work with care-giving responsibilities. Broadly, two categories of such work-home arrangements can be
distinguished:
(1) flexible arrangements that enlarge employees spatial or temporal flexibility (e.g. flexible work hours, working
from home); and
(2) care-related arrangements that facilitate balancing work with raising children (e.g. parental leave, calamity
leave).
Flexible hours or compressed work weeks generally allow parents to work more hours than they would if they were
forced to fit their hours into a Monday-to-Friday, 9-to-5 schedule. Teleworking, by making it possible to work while
not at work, also often results in working more hours whereas reduced work hours or care-related arrangements
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such as parental leave allow parents to work fewer hours than the standard number of hours per week (Dikkers, et.al,
2010). Organizations emphasizing management initiatives like improved employee services, opportunities for
personal growth, and employee development have been found to have fewer intentions of employees to resign. The
results of a study showed that organizations having provision of employee services had more commitment from their
employees for their organizations but fewer intentions to quit of employees (Lee et al., 2008). Some results also
reveal that absence of opportunity for professional growth and development affects management retention and
turnover (Walsh and Taylor, 2007). Firms like Starbucks and Southwest Airlines, have attributed their strong
performance to their emphasis on employee retention and development (Hinkin and Tracey, 2000). On the basis of
above literature, following proposition can be advanced:
Proposition 1: Availability of development and flexibility practices affect performance
and work-family conflict of dual career couples.

1b. Work and Organizational Culture

A Culture consists of the totality of assumptions, beliefs, values, social systems and institutions, physical artifacts
and behaviour of people, reflecting their desire to maintain continuity as well as to adapt to external demands. Work
culture means work related activities and the meanings attached to such activities in the framework of norms and
values are generally contextualized in an organization. Organizational culture, on the other hand, includes factors
ranging from organizational mission, philosophy, goals, objectives, systems, technology, managerial practices and
relationships, to employees beliefs and values regarding work (Sinha, 2000). Similarly, organizational climate can
be understood as a subset of organizational culture (Langford, 2009). Culture has also been defined by researchers
Hofstede (2003), Rousseau (1990) and Schein (2004) have defined culture as consisting of values and climate. Here
values are seen as fundamental, often unconscious, ways of understanding and evaluating the world. Where, in turn,
climate is being seen as the tangible and observable practices, systems and outcomes.
Researchers have found that culture creates competitiveness since it changes employee behaviour by making them
act consistently with the firms desired corporate culture, thereby influencing employee retention (Becker and
Huselid, 1999; Chew et al., 2005; Cutcher-Gershenfeld, 1991; Huselid, 1995; Kallenberg and Moody, 1994; Pfeffer,
1994). Dikkers, et.al, 2010 have quoted in their study that recent studies have addressed the fact that the utilization
of available arrangements depends largely on organizational culture (Thompson et al., 1999). Culture is an important
organizational factor influencing management of strategic HR function (Buller, 1988; Aryee, 1991; Truss and
Gratton, 1994). Truss and Gratton, 1994 commented that the type of culture an organization has exerts a stronge
influence on its strategy and also on its chosen HR strategy (Khatri and Budhwar, 2002). Hence, the following
proposition is developed:
Proposition 2: Supportive work and organizational culture have an impact on
performance and work family conflict of dual career couples.

1c. Rewards and Financial Benefits

The aim of reward systems was to attract, retain, and motivate staff. However, in recent times, the traditional view
has changed as it has been recognised that individuals are attracted, retained, and motivated by a wide range of
financial and non-financial rewards and that these can change over time depending on a range of influences
including the personal circumstances of employees (Martin, 2010). Rewards and financial benefits are very crucial
for optimum performance of employees in any organization. Fringe benefits which are an important part of an
employees compensation or financial benefit also have an impact on job satisfaction and career satisfaction in
several ways. Fringe benefits stand as an important component of worker compensation. The National
Compensation Survey conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated that benefits made up 30 per cent of
total compensation for all US civilian workers in 2006. Some benefits such as Social Security and Medicare, the
countrys publicly provided elderly pension and health insurance, are legally required and make up roughly 27 per
cent of all benefit compensation. The remaining 73 per cent of benefit compensation is comprised mostly of paid
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leave, insurance plans and retirement and savings plans. These benefits are often not subject to taxation and are,
therefore, cheaper to gain through an employer than through the market (Alpert, 1987). Consequently, cheaper
benefits should increase worker job and career satisfaction (Artz, 2010). Research studies have focused on
determining reasons of employees leaving organizations and also concentrating on factors positively influencing
employees to stay (Hoisch, 2001) and also the benefits associated with retaining tenured workers (Ramlall, 2004). .
Thus, following proposition can be stated:
Proposition 3: Presence of better reward and financial benefits boost performance and
lower work-family conflict of dual career couples.

HR Outcomes: Impact of HR Practices

Researchers suggest that a companys adoption of HPWS (high performance work systems) can have an
economically and statistically significant impact on employee turnover, productivity, or corporate financial
outcomes (Arthur, 1994; Ichniowski et al., 1997; Kochan and Osterman, 1994; Pfeffer, 1994; Huselid, 1995; Levine,
1995; MacDuffie, 1995; Koch and McGrath, 1996; Delaney and Huselid, 1996; Youndt et al., 1996; Guthrie, 2001).
These high performance work practices can include hiring and promotion practices in an organization. Studies have
examined the impact of hiring and promotion practices on retention and performance (Becker and Huselid, 1999;
Cho et al., 2006; Huselid, 1995; Milman, 2003; Milman and Ricci, 2004; Pfeffer, 1994; Shaw et al., 1998). HPWS
have shown to reduce power imbalances and increase mutual dependence in firms (Rocha, 2010).
Several studies showed the correlation of training activities with productivity and retention (Delery and Doty, 1996;
Kallenberg and Moody, 1994; MacDuffie, 1995; Shaw et al., 1998; Terpstra and Rozell, 1993; US Department of
Labor, 1993, Walsh and Taylor, 2007; Youndt et al., 1996). Employees when provide with better compensation and
recognition certainly stay for a longer tenure in an organization. Researchers have also found that turnover and
retention are impacted by employee compensation, rewards and recognition (Becker and Huselid, 1999; Cho et al.,
2006; Guthrie, 2001; Huselid, 1995; Milman and Ricci, 2004; Walsh and Taylor, 2007).

2a. Career Satisfaction

Career provides continuity, order, and meaning to a persons life by way of series of work related activities (Schein,
1996). Career planning shapes the progression of individuals with an organization in accordance with assessments of
organizational needs and the performance, potential and preferences of individual members of the enterprise
(Armstrong, 2005). Individuals enter a company with their own career plans and would be attracted to a company if
the companys practices satisfy their career needs (Chang, 1999). It was observed that perceptions of the accuracy of
merit system and the fairness of promotions accounted for most variability in employee commitment (Ogilvie,
1986). Further, higher promotional opportunity (Quarles, 1994) and high perceived opportunities for career
advancement and professional growth (Wallace, 1995; Martin and Hafer, 1997; Deery et al., 1994) also influence
organizational commitment.
Career planning is a deliberate attempt by an individual to become more aware of his or her, own skills, interests,
values, opportunities, constraints, choice, and consequence. It involves identifying career-related goals and
establishing plans for achieving those goals (Hall, 1986; Carnazza, 1982). Career management includes both
organizational actions and individual efforts aimed at setting career goals, formulating and implementing strategies
and monitoring the results (Greenhaus, 1987). If there is synchronization between the organization and individual
career aspirations, both will be benefited. The organization may experience increased productivity, higher
organizational commitment, and long-range effectiveness, and the employee may have greater satisfaction, security,
and personal development (Schein, 1978).Greenhaus et al., 1990 quoted in their study that career outcomes may be
viewed from both an external perspective, as judged by an organization, and from an internal perspective, as judged
by an employee (Schein, 1978). Hence the following proposition can be advanced:
Proposition 4: Career satisfaction is comparatively more if HR practices of an
organization are supportive.
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2b. Job Satisfaction
Job satisfaction has been described in a variety of ways. A general denition of job satisfaction is how much one is
fond of ones job. Job satisfaction has been conceptualized as an appraisal of ones job (i.e., a cognitive variable), an
affective reaction to ones job, or an attitude towards ones job (Weiss, 2002). Job satisfaction can also be discussed
in global or facet aspects. Global job satisfaction refers to the overall feeling towards the particular job. Global job
satisfaction is a predictor of organizational citizenship behaviors (Organ & Ryan, 1995), absenteeism (Wegge,
Schmidt, Parkes, & van Dick, 2007) and turnover (Saari & Judge, 2004). The facet approach is used to nd out what
aspects of the job context produce satisfaction or dissatisfaction. Some of the facets measured are satisfaction with
the job, supervisor, coworkers, pay, and promotion.
Anderson et al. (1994) observed that employee commitment can be measured by job satisfaction and pride in their
work. Sureshchandar et al. (2001a, b) suggested that firms must focus on employee job satisfaction because there is
a high association between employee perceptions of well-being and the customers perception of service quality.
Increased employee relations and satisfaction will lead to successful quality implementations in the service sector.
Expectancy theory states that high performance leads to greater rewards (both extrinsic and intrinsic) which in turn
increases job satisfaction (Lawler and Porter, 1967).
Studies have found the linkage between job satisfaction and the act of quitting (Brayfield and Crockett, 1955;
Vroom, 1964). Poorer performers have been found to be less satisfied with their jobs, more likely to be absent
(Viswesvaran, 2002), and more likely to leave the organization (Griffeth et al., 2000). But, as noted by Fishbein and
Ajzen (1975), intentions toward an act or behaviour are distinct from that act or behaviour itself. That is, even
though an employee may intend to quit, they may not actually do so. There are other factors too associated with an
employees decision to quit, merely intending to quit may not lead to actual quitting. Thus, on the basis of above
literature following proposition can be stated:
Proposition 5: Presence of supportive HR practices have an positive impact on job
satisfaction of an employee.

2c. Intentions to Leave

A lot of studies have shown the relationship between job performance and turnover (Zimmerman and Darnold,
2009; Birnbaum and Somers, 1993; Jackofsky, 1984; Keller, 1984). Sometimes, it is the shocks in the work
environment that cause employees/executives to think of quitting their jobs. Specifically, Allen and Griffeth (1999)
noted that such shocks could happen when employees receive negative feedback during informal performance
feedback or during their formal performance appraisals, which could lead to intentions to quit or immediate quitting.
In their research paper on testing the whether job embeddedness is a mediator of the relationship between human
resource practices and employees intention to quit, Bergiel et al. (2009) found that job embeddedness fully
mediated compensation and growth opportunity, partially mediated supervisor support, and did not mediate training
in relation to employees intention to quit.
Cho et al. (2006) reported that organizations which incorporate high-performance work practices are more likely to
experience lower turnover rates for non-managerial employees. Improved employee morale, increased productivity,
decreased absenteeism, and lower turnover rates are the benefits that organizations derive if they provide employees
with employee assistance programs (Thompson et al., 2004). There are findings which lead to assuming that when
employees assume that organizational identity is their identity, commitment increases and turnover decreases.
Employees who highly identify with their organizations can be expected to be more committed to the organization
and have lower turnover intentions (Mael and Ashforth, 1992; van Knippenberg and van Schie, 2000). Hence the
following proposition is developed:

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Proposition 6: Intentions to leave is comparatively less in case of an organization in
which HR practices are supportive for employees.

Conclusions
Human Resource Management is an emerging area for study as it changes fast in changing environment under
globalization. With the passage of time and due to the globalization of the business including Human Resources,
various contemporary issues in HR have emerged. One of such an issue, which has received great attention from
researchers, is Workforce Diversity. Nowadays the focus is on smaller families with all heads working, which make
women to come out of their traditional role and work. With this independency of the women, their focus towards
their career leads them to the corporate world. With the entrance of women in job a new dimension, Workforce
Diversity in gender was identified. Increasing number and level of education of women leads to an increase in their
career aspirations.
The review of the literature on various supportive HR practices have shown that to effectively manage the human
resources the organizations have to implement supportive HR practices. The organizations which implements such
practices with dedication, remains ahead of their competitors because such practices affects other outcomes like
career satisfaction, job satisfaction, intention to leave etc. in a positive manner and leads to overall corporate and
individual performance. While designing and implementing such practices, one important thing is to be kept in mind
that the supportive HR practices should be revised from time to time and also proper feedback must be taken from
employees so that it should be updated accordingly. Dual career couples should also be involved in designing and
implementing these supportive HR practices and survey should be conducted among employees to know their
opinion about implemented supportive HR practices. Because according to the norms of ours traditional society,
females are bound with more feminine tasks and family responsibilities and men are the bread-winners for the
family but now when scenario is changed, responsibility and challenges for employing organization equally changed
.Also, above reviewed literature clearly showed that if HR practices are supportive i.e. if organization provide good
development and flexible practices, comfortable work and organizational culture and also the rewards and benefits
employees receive are good than the HR outcomes i.e. career and job satisfaction increases and intention to leave the
organization lower down significantly. So, it calls for a need to evolve supportive HR practices to cope up with these
problems of HR outcomes and work-life conflicts among working couples.
Older and more recent studies have pointed out the need for longitudinal research and the importance of a life cycle
perspective when studying HR practices in case of dual-career couples. In fact, there should be a general consent
that marriages are fluid arrangements .At some stages of a relationship (e.g. during career-building), the allocation of
tasks and responsibilities is very different from other stages (e.g. during the early years of child rearing). The shifts
from more to less traditional types among married couples and, however, are understandable when viewed within a
long temporal framework. Only few scholars, however, have adopted such a research design when studying the
dual-career couples/family.

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