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Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

International Journal of Hospitality Management

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ijhosman

Restaurant human resource managers’ attitudes towards workplace

diversity, perceptions and definition of ethical hiring
Amir S. Durrani a,1 , Lakshman Rajagopal b,∗,1
a
31 MacKay Hall, Department of Apparel, Events and Hospitality Management, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011-1121, USA
b
Associate Professor in Hospitality Management, 31 MacKay Hall, Department of Apparel, Events and Hospitality Management, Iowa State University,
Ames, IA 50011-1121, USA

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Human resource (HR) managers play a vital role in hiring new employees. We administered a web-based
Received 1 August 2014 questionnaire to a convenience sample of HR managers’ who were members of the Council of Hotel and
Received in revised form Restaurant Trainers (CHART) to assess their attitudes towards workplace diversity, perceptions of eth-
23 September 2015
ical hiring within their organization, and their definition of ethical hiring. Significant differences were
Accepted 27 October 2015
Available online xxx
observed between attitudes towards ethical hiring and HR managers’ ethnicity, and between organiza-
tional size and perceptions of ethical hiring within organizations. Given the diversity of today’s labor
market, findings from this study have potential for impacting training of HR managers and hiring of
Keywords:
Diversity foodservice personnel.
Ethical hiring © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Human resource management
Restaurants

1. Introduction
A fundamental human resources (HR) activity is hiring which,
if managed well, can significantly influence an organization’s per-
formance (Royce, 2007). Regardless of organization size, hiring
new employees is a time-consuming and expensive process that
includes recruiting, processing, eliminating, and selecting appli-
cants (Fernandez-Araroz, 1999). Ineffective hiring can lead to low
employee morale due to job-employee misfit, poor employee
performance, loss of business opportunities, and high employee
turnover. Garavan et al. (1995) saw a relationship between effective
hiring practices and organizational performance, and advised orga-
nizations to ensure a more strategic approach to HR management
before focusing on the actual selection and recruitment process.
One important aspect of an HR managers’ job is the enforcement
of fair hiring policies, especially in those industries that typically
employ a diverse workforce.
The restaurant industry employs a diverse workforce of approx-
imately 13 million workers, making it one of the largest employers
in the United States (U.S.) accounting for nearly 10% of the total
U.S. workforce (NRA, 2013). The restaurant industry expects to add
∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 515 294 9740; fax: +1 515 294 6364.
E-mail addresses: adurrani@iastate.edu (A.S. Durrani), lraj@iastate.edu
(L. Rajagopal).
1
Phone: 515-294-9740; fax: 515-294-6364
another 1.3 million jobs over the next decade with employment
reaching 14.4 million by 2023. To meet the needs of this growing
industry, effective hiring procedures must be practiced so that qual-
ified individuals will be hired. With the increasing diversity of the
U.S. population, the applicant pool has also become increasingly
diverse (US DBLS, 2012). Race- and gender-based discrimination
in hiring are well documented (Bendick et al., 2010; Bertrand and
Mullainathan, 2004; Neumark et al., 1996; Rudman and Glick, 1999;
Shih et al., 2002), however, there is limited research related to
hiring practices in the restaurant industry (Antun et al., 2007;
MacHatton et al., 1997; Martin & Groves, 2002).
HR professionals are critical to the success of organizations
(Ulrich, 1998) and decisions made by them have a short-term
and long-term impact on organizations (Tracey and Nathan,
2002). However, Raub et al. (2006) found an apparent discon-
nect between HR professionals and the rest of the organization.
Causes for this disconnect may be attributed to HR profession-
als being involved primarily in the implementation of decisions
but lacking interaction with line-level employees or being too
involved with routine administrative duties. Since HR managers
serve as role models for employees and their actions and atti-
tudes impact the individuals they supervise; it is critical to
assessing their attitudes toward ethical hiring and diversity. The
purpose of this study was to assess restaurant industry HR man-
agers’ attitudes towards workplace diversity, perceptions of ethical
hiring within their organization, and their definition of ethical
hiring.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2015.10.009
0278-4319/© 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Please cite this article in press as: Durrani, A.S., Rajagopal, L., Restaurant human resource managers’ attitudes towards workplace
diversity, perceptions and definition of ethical hiring. Int. J. Hospitality Manage. (2015), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2015.10.009
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2. Literature review
The restaurant industry is rich in terms of the diversity of its
workforce (U.S.Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2012). Ethnic minorities
comprise a higher percentage of workers in management pos-
itions in the restaurant industry (9% Black/African-American, 15%
Hispanic origin, and 11% Asians) compared to other management-
oriented occupations in the U.S. (6% Black or African–American,
8% Hispanic origin, and 4% Asian) (NRA, 2013). Aghazadeh (2004)
emphasized that a diverse workforce provides unparalleled oppor-
tunities for companies and individuals to tap the ideas, creativity,
and potential contributions inherent in a diverse workforce. McKay
et al. (2011) found organizations that foster pro-diversity work
climates had higher customer satisfaction than those organiza-
tions that were perceived by customers as low-diversity climates.
Workforce diversity can also lead to issues such as communication
problems, decreased team cohesiveness, and ineffective manage-
ment due to cultural differences.
To gain a clearer view of their surroundings, Kary-Siobhan
(2002) recommended exposure to new ideas, cultures, and per-
spectives as a way to reach out intellectually and understand their
place in the world. This in turn enables the organization to provide
a workplace where people from diverse backgrounds can easily
assimilate into the organization. Part of an organization’s financial
and operational success comes from effectively managing peo-
ple, providing them with a safe working environment, and the
best opportunities or paths to advancement. Organizations that
attract and retain the best employees, enjoy a significant opera-
tional advantage over their competition (Meyer, 2002). Managers
should be aware of their company’s mission (i.e., serving customers,
projecting a welcoming perception through employees’ demeanor,
and few or no lawsuits) and strive to reduce risks to the company’s
mission by choosing the “right” individual for the job (Lousig-Nont,
2000). An organization suffers when staffed with employees who
project bad attitudes toward co-workers and customers, unmoti-
vated employees, and employees with poor customer service skills
(Wang and Kleiner, 2000).
In addition, federal law prohibits workplace discrimination in
the following situations: recruiting and hiring, conducting job
evaluations, developing promotion policies, conducting training,
developing compensation and disciplinary action plans (United
States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), 2011).
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) (United States Department of
Labor, 2009) governs minimum wage, overtime pay and record-
keeping, and employment of minors (under 18 years of age)
for federal, state and local governments, as well as the private
sector. The FLSA specifically prescribes regulations that protect
workers’ rights, specifically those who are minors (under age
18) or groups who may become victims of discrimination. How-
ever, “most diversity management practices focus on adhering to
non-discrimination laws and reducing displays of formal discrimi-
nation” (Hebl et al., 2008; Madera, 2013)
The manner in which an organization manages its human
resources invariably sets the tone and conditions of the employee
- employer relationship thereby impacting employee behavior
(Tsaur and Lin, 2004). Schneider and Bowen (1993) found over-
all employee performance optimizes when employees perceive
their organization as one that facilitates job performance, enhances
careers for its workers and provides positive supervision; thus
advocating the critical role effective human resources practices.
Organizational recruitment practices that aim at building a multi-
cultural workforce can influence perceptions of a positive diversity
climate (Herdman and McMillan-Capehart, 2010). Higher turnover
has been found in organizations that practice a hard approach
towards human resource practices as opposed to those organi-
zations that practices a soft approach. Organizations with soft
Please cite this article in press as: Durrani, A.S., Rajagopal, L., Restaurant human resource managers’ attitudes towards workplace
diversity, perceptions and definition of ethical hiring. Int. J. Hospitality Manage. (2015), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2015.10.009
approach are more likely to adopt innovative recruitment methods
as these organizations are more humanistic and consider employ-
ees to be proactive as well as trustworthy and seeks to obtain their
commitment, trust and productivity, while the hard approach fol-
lows an economic approach towards human resource management
and views its HR just as one of its resources (Ishak et al., 2011).
A study of HRM practices in Valencia, Spain hotels by Marco-
Lajara and Úbeda-García (2013) found high employee turnover
rates of 25% or higher in many management areas and the use
of innovative recruitment methods was sparse due to adherence
to hard approach towards HRM. An investigation of the rela-
tionship between 12 human resource management practices and
organizational performance as measured by turnover rates by
Cho et al. (2006) showed those companies with practices such
as labor-management participation programs, incentive plans, and
pre-employment tests are more likely to experience lower turnover
rates among non-managerial employees than those organizations
that did not have such practices in place.
Another approach that organizations can take to improve
organizational hiring and recruitment practices is by providing
multicultural training that can help improve interpersonal cross-
cultural skills. In a study by Lee and Chon (2000), participants
perceived multicultural training to be successful in improving
interpersonal skills thereby enhancing their ability to deal with
workforce diversity. Woods and King (2002) suggested this train-
ing be provided in a systematic manner using the training cycle
approach starting with needs assessment, undergo training and
implementation, and finally evaluating the program for multicul-
tural training to be successful.
Looi et al. (2004) emphasized that the best practices in HR are
doing a few core practices very well, providing an organization with
maximum opportunity to remain an employer of choice, sustain-
ing of employee practices maintained through a common focus, and
maintaining a culture that reinforces adaptability and diversity. An
extensive study of HR professionals by Rynes et al. (2002) indicated
a direct link between HR practices on organizational productivity
and a firm’s financial performance. Keeping in mind the demands
on an HR professional’s time, evaluating HR job functions and mea-
suring the effectiveness of implemented practices is a difficult task,
yet one that can reasonably be expected of organizations.
Given the relationship between effective hiring practices and
organizational performance, organizations need to ensure a more
strategic approach to human resources planning before mov-
ing on to the actual recruitment and selection process (Garavan
et al., 1995). With the importance for an organization to suc-
ceed in today’s competitive environment, HR managers must work
towards attracting, recruiting, and retaining a capable, efficient, and
diverse workforce. However, few studies have investigated ethical
hiring from the view of HR managers in the restaurant industry.
The purpose of this study was to assess restaurant industry HR
managers’ attitudes towards workplace diversity and ethical hir-
ing, perceptions of ethical hiring within their organizations, and
their definition of ethical hiring.
3. Methodology
The university’s Human Subjects Institutional Review Board
(IRB) reviewed and approved the research protocol and data col-
lection tools prior to data collection.
3.1. Sample
A convenience sample of HR managers belonging to the Council
of Hotel and Restaurant Trainers (CHART) in the United States par-
ticipated in this study. CHART (2012) is a professional organization
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made up of 330 members from more than 300 multi-unit restau-
rants and hotel companies in the United States and represents a
workforce of nearly five million workers. CHART members include
all facets of hospitality training, learning and performance profes-
sionals from entry level to senior executives. CHART members were
specifically chosen for this study because the purpose of this study
was to assess HR manager attitudes, perceptions, and definition
towards workplace diversity and ethical hiring. A screening ques-
tion “Are you employed in the restaurant industry?” was included to
only allow HR managers with experience in the restaurant industry
to participate in this study.
gift cards. Following Dillman’s recommendation (Dillman, 2008),
email reminders were sent at week one, two, and three.
3.4. Data analysis
Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sci-
ences (SPSS 19.0). Data coding and entry followed procedures
recommended by Dillman (2008). The Cronbach’s coefficient of
reliability (␣) was computed to determine reliability of the scales.
4. Results

3.2. Questionnaire development 4.1. Respondents’ profile

A web-based questionnaire was developed after an extensive
review of literature on hiring to explore HR managers’ attitudes
towards workplace diversity, perceptions of ethical hiring within
their organization, and their definition of ethical hiring. The ques-
tionnaire consisted of four sections. The first section consisted of
questions related to respondent demographics. The second section
assessed respondents’ attitudes towards diversity and workplace
diversity. The third section assessed respondents’ perceptions of
ethical hiring within their organization. A 5-point Likert-type
scale and corresponding descriptors (SA = Strongly Agree, A = Agree,
N = Neutral, D = Disagree, SD = Strongly Disagree) were used in the
second and third section.
The fourth section consisted of the Social Desirability Scale
(SDS-17) developed by Stöber (2001) which was used to identify
respondents’ propensity to provide socially desirable responses.
The Social Desirability Scale (SDS-17) is composed of 16 true-false
Two hundred and seventy-nine questionnaires were sent,
19 were undeliverable due to invalid email addresses, and 21
questionnaires were improperly filled, resulting in 80 useable ques-
tionnaires (response rate of 28.7%). According to Lucas (1995),
obtaining participation in the hospitality industry, especially in
research related to human resources is typically difficult, as respon-
dents may hesitate to respond to information they consider
“sensitive”. The majority of respondents were male (58.7%), Cau-
casian (83.8%), and over the age of 46 years (47.4%). More than
two-thirds of respondents possessed an undergraduate college
degree or higher. Most respondents (73.7%) had more than 10 years
of HRM experience. Majority of the respondents (66.5%) worked in
companies with 1000 or more employees (Table 1).
Table 1
Demographic characteristics of human resource managers (N = 63–80).

items, e.g., “I will never live off other people,” “I sometimes lit- Demographic characteristics Frequency (n) Percent (%)
ter.” The reliability and validity of the SDS-17 is well-established Gender
(Ellingson et al., 1999; Hancock and Flowers, 2001; Musch et al., Female 33 41.3
2002; Blake et al., 2006). Also, an open-ended question, “Please Male 47 58.7
define what ethical hiring means to you?” was included to deter-
Age in years
mine what respondents considered as “ethical hiring” and if the
26–35 19 23.8
definition varied among HR managers. 36–45 23 28.8
Three hospitality management educators with expertise in 46–55 33 41.3
human resource management and foodservice operations eval- Over 55 years old 5 6.1
uated the questionnaire for content and clarity. Suggestions
Ethnicity
for revisions were incorporated into the questionnaire before White 67 83.8
proceeding with the pilot study. The web-based questionnaire was Non-white 13 16.2
pilot-tested with ten HR managers belonging to CHART with exper-
tise in human resource management and restaurant operations. Number of languages spokena
One 54 67.5
Participants from the pilot study were not included in the final
Two 9 32.5
sample. The purpose of the pilot test was to seek feedback on clarity
and content, response choices, time needed to complete the ques- Education
tionnaire, and provide additional comments and suggestions for No college 27 33.8
improvement. Reminder emails were sent at week two to partici- Undergraduate degree 40 50.0
Graduate degree 13 16.2
pants who had not responded to the questionnaire. Items that were
repetitive or unclear were deleted and items lacking clarity were Religious beliefs
modified based on feedback obtained in the pilot study. None/Atheism 10 12.5
Catholic 17 21.3
Christian 44 55.0
3.3. Data collection Other 9 11.2

HR experience
The questionnaire was distributed electronically using
Less than 10 yearsb 21 26.3
SurveyGizmoTM . Respondents received an email with a hyperlink 10 to 14 years 24 30.0
to the questionnaire along with the informed consent form. The 15 to 19 years 12 15.0
purpose of the study was explained and a screening question was 20 years or more 23 28.7
included at the beginning of the questionnaire which allowed only
Company size
HR managers working in the restaurant industry to participate in Less than 1000 employees 28 35.0
the study. To ensure respondents’ anonymity, Internet Protocol 1000 employees or more 52 65.5
addresses were not collected. Respondents who submitted the a
No respondent could speak three or more languages fluently.
questionnaire (complete or incomplete) and provided their email b
Responses choices of “less than 5 years” and “between 5 and 9 years” were
address were included in a drawing to receive one of eight $25 combined.

Please cite this article in press as: Durrani, A.S., Rajagopal, L., Restaurant human resource managers’ attitudes towards workplace
diversity, perceptions and definition of ethical hiring. Int. J. Hospitality Manage. (2015), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2015.10.009
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Table 2 Table 3
Human resource managers’ attitudes towards workplace diversity (N = 67–80). Human resource managers’ attitudes towards workplace diversity and demographic
characteristics (N = 67–80).
Statement Meana SD
Characteristic Mean attitude scorea (SD)
I feel that everyone is unique, with differing 4.63 0.67
values and preferencesb Gender
I believe in fairness in hiring at all levels 4.49 0.89 Female 4.11 (0.42) t-value = −1.055
I find it unsatisfying to work within a diverse 4.33 0.80 Male 3.99 (0.51)
teamb Age
I feel that both newcomers and the 4.33 0.82 26 to 45 years 4.06 (0.49) t-value = −0.054
organizations in which they work should 46 years and 4.07 (0.43)
learn to work together older
I feel equally comfortable with all groups 3.91 1.04 Ethnicity
I am knowledgeable about the culture of 3.88 0.78 White 4.13 (0.42) t-value = 2.093*
different ethnic groups (e.g., Asian, African, Non-white 3.82 (0.59) p = 0.04
Middle-Eastern) Number of languages spoken
I show little patience and understanding with 3.87 1.14 One 4.07 (0.39) t-value = −0.629
people who speak little or no Englishb Two 4.17 (0.68)
I am drawn to others who are different than me 3.66 0.84 Company size
Overall Mean 4.13 0.87 Less than 1000 4.00 (0.41) t-value = −0.984
a
employees
Scale for statements: 1 = strongly disagree; 2 = disagree; 3 = neutral; 4 = agree;
1000 employees 4.12 (0.48)
5 = strongly agree.
b
or more
Reverse coded items: 1 = strongly agree; 2 = agree; 3 = neutral; 4 = disagree;
Educational level
5 = strongly disagree.
High 4.15 (0.36) F-value = 0.63
Coefficient alpha reliability = 0.65.
school/Some
college
Bachelor’s degree 4.00 (0.40)
4.2. HR managers’ attitudes towards workplace diversity Master’s degree 4.04 (0.50)
or higher
Table 2 illustrates respondents’ attitudes towards workplace Religious beliefs
diversity. The Cronbach’s coefficient for reliability was computed at None/Atheism 2.39 (0.22) F-value = 0.32
Catholic 2.29 (0.26)
0.58; removing the item, “I admit my stereotypes about other groups”
Christian 2.41 (0.46)
increased the alpha value to 0.65. Nunnally (1978) indicated 0.7 Other 2.40 (0.45)
to be an acceptable reliability coefficient, but lower thresholds HR experience
have been used in literature. This item was excluded from data Less than 10 4.18 (0.37) F-value = 0.66
years
analysis. The overall mean for the eight attitudes statements were
10–14 years 3.97 (0.55)
4.13 ± 0.87 (1 = strongly disagree, 2 = disagree, 3 = neutral, 4 = agree, 15–19 years 4.06 (0.37)
5 = strongly agree). The statement “I feel that everyone is unique, with 20 years or more 4.07 (0.49)
differing values and preferences” had the highest mean (4.63 ± 0.67), a
Mean sum score for all attitude items rated on a 5-point Likert-type scale with
while the statement “I am drawn to others who are different than 1 (strongly disagree) and 5 (strongly agree)
me” was lowest (3.66 ± 0.84). Table 3 shows the results for HR man- *
p < 0.05.
agers’ attitudes towards ethical hiring practices and demographic
characteristics. The t-tests revealed significant differences between
Table 4
ethnicity and attitudes towards ethical hiring t (1,65) = 2.093,
Human resource mangers’ perceptions of ethical hiring within their organization
p = .04; White = 4.13, Non-White = 3.82. No other significant differ- (N = 62–80).
ences were observed.
Statement Meana SD

4.3. HR managers’ perceptions of ethical hiring within their My organization’s hiring practices are ethical 4.42 0.69
and fair.
organization Hiring managers in my organization 4.31 0.71
understand the meaning and value of ethical
The overall mean for nine items assessing HR managers’ per- and fair hiring.
ceptions of ethical hiring within their organization was 3.95 ± 0.88. Hiring managers strictly follow a hiring 4.31 0.72
process mandated by HR.
The Cronbach’s coefficient of reliability was 0.82, which is higher
My organization hires employees of various 4.16 0.91
than the 0.70 and considered acceptable (Nunnally, 1978). HR man- ethnicities and diverse backgrounds.
agers were in agreement that their organization had ethical and My organization has a welcoming environment 4.13 0.82
fair hiring practices as indicated in response to the statement “My for newly hired workers.
organization’s hiring practices are ethical and fair” (M = 4.42 ± 0.69). My organization promotes diversity at all 4.05 0.91
levels.
Human resources managers are perceived that their organiza- I see hiring managers in our organization show 3.66 0.94
tion promoted diversity at all levels (4.05 ± 0.91) and had not patience and understanding with people
observed their organization hiring employees who were not qual- who speak little English.b
ified (M = 3.10 ± 1.24) (Table 4). I have taken disciplinary action towards hiring 3.37 1.00
managers who violate ethical hiring process.
Table 5 shows the results for HR managers’ perceptions of
I have seen employees hired in our 3.10 1.24
ethical hiring practices and demographic characteristics. t-tests organization that had little to no required
revealed significant differences between company size and per- qualifications.b
ceptions towards hiring, t (1,65) = −2.071, p = 0.043; M: Less than Overall Mean 3.95 0.88
1000 employees = 3.72, 1000 employees or more = 4.02. One- a
Scale for statements: 1 = strongly disagree; 2 = disagree; 3 = neutral; 4 = agree;
way ANOVA revealed significant differences between educational 5 = strongly agree.
b
level and perceptions of hiring, F (2,64) = 0.948, p = 0.050; M: high Reverse coded items: 1 = strongly agree; 2 = agree; 3 = neutral; 4 = disagree;
5 = strongly disagree.
school/GED, some college = 3.94, Bachelor’s degree = 3.87, Graduate
Coefficient alpha reliability = 0.82.
degree = 3.89. No other significant relationships were observed.

Please cite this article in press as: Durrani, A.S., Rajagopal, L., Restaurant human resource managers’ attitudes towards workplace
diversity, perceptions and definition of ethical hiring. Int. J. Hospitality Manage. (2015), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2015.10.009
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Table 5 a scale of 0–16 indicating that the responses provided were not
Human resource managers’ perceptions of ethical hiring within organizations and
highly socially desirable, but still had some level of social desirabil-
demographic characteristics (N = 62–67).
ity.
Characteristic Mean Attitudea Score (SD)

Gender
Female 3.91 (0.56) t-value = −0.103 5. Discussion
Male 3.89 (0.62)
Age
This study investigated restaurant industry HR managers’ atti-
26–45 years 3.94 (0.46) t-value = 0.446
46 years and older 3.87 (0.68) tudes towards workplace diversity and ethical hiring, perceptions
Ethnicity of ethical hiring within their organizations, and their definition of
White 3.90 (0.57) t-value = −0.092 ethical hiring. An effective HR department provides a roadmap to
Non-white 3.92 (0.61)
guide individual restaurant teams in navigating the recruitment
Number of languages spoken
One 3.91 (0.54) t-value = −0.274
process and selecting qualified candidates. To maintain organiza-
Two 3.85 (0.77) tional hiring standards, HR personnel must be knowledgeable of the
Company size laws that govern their industry and formulate policies that promote
Less than 1000 employees 3.72 (0.62) t-value = −2.071* ethical hiring standards. In addition to providing face to face train-
1000 employees or more 4.02 (0.51) p = 0.043
ing, knowledge can also be shared through informational posters,
Educational level
High school/Some college 3.94 (0.46) F-value = 0.948*
sending weekly electronic newsletters and email alerts, and short,
Bachelor’s degree 3.87 (0.62) p = 0.050 online training sessions. Personnel who complete training could
Master’s degree or higher 3.89 (0.63) be rewarded by recognizing them in the company newsletter or
Religious beliefs
providing a financial reward. In this study, White respondents
None/Atheism 2.39 (0.22) F-value = 0.930
Catholic 2.29 (0.26)
(M = 4.13) self-reported a more positive attitude towards work-
Christian 2.41 (0.46) place diversity than non-Whites (M = 3.82) which is encouraging
Other 2.40 (0.45) because other researchers have found negative attitudes among
HR experience Whites towards workplace diversity (Shih et al., 2002; Bendick
Less than 10 years 3.97 (0.48) F-value = 0.165
et al., 2010). The lower mean scores for attitudes towards workplace
10–14 years 3.92 (0.68)
15–19 years 3.87 (0.52) diversity among non-Whites is interesting and could be attributed
20 years or more 3.84 (0.64) to a lower number of non-White participants in the respondent
a
Mean sum score for all attitude items rated on a 5-point Likert type scale with
pool; hence the results must be interpreted with caution. An eval-
1 (strongly disagree) and 5 (strongly agree) uation of career and demographic history of 5549 hotel managers
*
p < 0.05. in 552 properties by Costen et al. (2002) also found Whites to
represent 75% of the participants and 80% of top four managerial
positions were held by Whites, suggesting not many ethnic minori-
4.4. Definition of ethical hiring
ties held managerial positions and they were usually clustered in
housekeeping-type jobs
When asked to define ethical hiring, respondents provided the
In this study, HR managers confirmed that their hiring managers
following definitions:
followed the hiring procedures outlined by their organization’s
“Hiring the most qualified candidate instead of hiring someone human resource department. Organizational size was found to be
who is not qualified but may share your similar values, beliefs, significant in perceptions of ethical hiring within organizations
customs, or attitudes.” which could be a result of higher level of transparency, standardized
hiring practices, and improved communication across the board in
“The practice of hiring an individual based on education, expe-
larger organizations. If an organization’s hiring practices are pur-
rience, and other work-related factors without any bias.”
poseful, knowledge and attitudes towards hiring and diversity must
“Ethical hiring means to be fair to all candidates; evaluating be integrated as an important focus throughout the hiring process.
them only against job requirements and eliminating any per- An organization must ensure that unit managers fully embrace
sonal prejudices or stereotyping.” the organization’s goals and mission to provide a work environ-
ment where people are hired, trained, and treated fairly. Providing
“Non-discrimination of sexual orientation, religion, age, race or
unit managers with training in the area of hiring and other HR-
any other factors related to a person as an individual.”
related activities (i.e., conducting performance evaluations and,
“Following anti-discrimination policies, having an open and providing career development programs) will not only benefit the
welcoming work environment for everyone, embracing differ- employees but also the organization as it attains greater opera-
ences.” tional success with qualified workers. Positive perceptions of HR
practices increase employees’ motivation to provide high-quality
“It should not matter what a person looks like or their personal
service (Tsaur and Lin, 2004).
background. Can they perform the job that you are hiring for?”
It is not surprising that the success of an organization begins
Most respondents had similar definitions of ethical hiring which and ends with its staff. Our findings indicate that both male and
indicated that respondents were aware of the meaning of ethical female HR managers had similar views on workplace diversity.
hiring. Koza (2004) defined the term ethical to include “con- Even though males represented the majority of respondents, work-
sideration of ideas related to principled, just, fair, decent, and place diversity was favorably viewed regardless of gender. Fair and
distinguishing between what is good and evil.” Hinman (2003) has ethical HR-mandated hiring practices, a welcoming environment
defined ethics as “the explicit philosophical reflection on moral for new hires, and taking corrective action against managers who
beliefs and practices and conscious stepping back and reflecting violate ethical hiring processes did not yield statistically significant
on morality.” differences in the perceptions between males and females. Compar-
The Cronbach’s alpha for scores on the social desirability on the isons of the responses between gender groups reveal agreement on
SDS-17 scale was 0.70, which was considered acceptable (Stöber, the importance of attitudes towards hiring. The results from this
2001). The mean score on the SDS-17 scale was 9.18 ± 3.07 on study indicate a consistency between HR managers’ demographics

Please cite this article in press as: Durrani, A.S., Rajagopal, L., Restaurant human resource managers’ attitudes towards workplace
diversity, perceptions and definition of ethical hiring. Int. J. Hospitality Manage. (2015), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2015.10.009
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6 A.S. Durrani, L. Rajagopal / International Journal of Hospitality Management xxx (2015) xxx–xxx
and their perceptions that diversity is an important organizational
initiative.
Not all respondents had a common definition of “ethical hir-
ing” and most seemed to hinge on following rules to comply with
legal guidelines and prevent possible legal action against HR man-
agers or the organization. Hebel et al. (2008) and Madera (2013)
found that in general “most diversity management practices focus
on adhering to non-discrimination laws and reducing displays of
formal discrimination” an observation similar to that made in this
study when analyzing participants’ definitions of ethical hiring.
6. Conclusions
Findings from this study provide an inside view of restaurant
industry HR managers’ attitudes towards workplace diversity and
ethical hiring, perceptions of ethical hiring within their organiza-
tions, and their definition of ethical hiring. No known research had
yet explored ethical hiring as viewed by HR managers. Past research
has shown a disconnect between HR professionals and rest of the
organization (Tracey & Nathan, 2002; Raub et al., 2006) which is
attributable to HR professionals being primarily involved in mak-
ing and implementing decisions, lacking interaction with line-level
employees, and greater involvement in administrative routines.
Researchers recommend that employers review their recruitment
practices and selection criteria, and promote diversity by remov-
ing any potential for discrimination (Carnevale and Stone, 1994;
Graziano et al., 2007; Eagly and Karau, 2002) as improper hiring
can have a negative impact on organizational success (Wang and
Kleiner, 2000). Hiring is as an integral part of every organizational
action and it cannot be viewed as an isolated function; all members
of management must follow a fair hiring process.
6.1. Practical implications
Findings from this study will be of interest to those interested
with advancing the ethical hiring agenda among all HR profes-
sionals. Given the scale of the labor market in the foodservice
industry, HR managers’ attitudes and perceptions of ethical hiring
in this study offer an encouraging view that can impact operations
and affect the hiring of millions of foodservice workers. HR man-
agers are in a position to serve as role models for employees in
their organizations because HR managers’ actions and attitudes
can impact the individuals they oversee; therefore assessing HR
managers’ attitudes towards workplace diversity and hiring is crit-
ical. This can be accomplished by conducting a needs assessment
survey of HR managers’ attitudes towards diversity, ethical hiring
practices, challenges and barriers when working in a diverse work-
place; which can help identify areas that need improvement and
that could be addressed during training and/or making changes to
organizational HRM protocols. Raub et al. (2006) suggested that HR
managers should be involved in the change process and share the
responsibility with a manager at the unit level for effective imple-
mentation. Organizations can benefit from HR professionals who
know and value workplace diversity and ethical hiring practices.
Clearly describing the organization’s views on workplace diversity,
definition of ethical hiring, and hiring practices during employee
training will ensure that all employees are on the “same page” and
reduce ambiguity, thereby avoiding issues in the hiring process.
Organizations can invest in diversity training programs that high-
light the importance of ethical hiring practices through roleplay in
an effort to “humanize” the hiring process.
6.2. Research implications
Future research can conduct an in-depth inquiry into the
attitudes, knowledge, and perceived importance of workplace
Please cite this article in press as: Durrani, A.S., Rajagopal, L., Restaurant human resource managers’ attitudes towards workplace
diversity, perceptions and definition of ethical hiring. Int. J. Hospitality Manage. (2015), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2015.10.009
diversity and ethical hiring practices using interviews and/or
focus groups. It would also be interesting to carry out a similar
assessment in organizations that comprise of a higher number of
minorities or minority-owned organizations. Future studies could
also explore attitudes, knowledge, and perceptions of ethical hiring
at the unit manager level to detect any differences between corpo-
rate and unit level managers. Research is also needed to explore job
applicants’ experiences when applying for a job and the interview
process to discover ways in which to get a clear understanding of
hiring practices from the interviewee’s point of view and identify
ways in which hiring practices can be improved.
6.3. Limitations
This study contains certain limitations that should be consid-
ered. While this study provided valuable insights into HR managers’
attitudes towards workplace diversity and their perceptions of eth-
ical hiring, the sample was drawn from the CHART member list
that limits generalization of results. Data collected were based on
self-reports by HR managers, rather than on observations of HR
practices. Hence the results of this study should be viewed with
caution. Issues with the lack of perceived transparency or chal-
lenges may develop where employees working downstream may
not perceive their input and participation as being valued in the
development and implementation of ethical hiring policies.
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