Sustaining precarity : critically examining tourism and employment

There is consensus that the social, or people, dimension of sustainability including its workforce thematics are neglected in the tourism literature and policy despite its prevalence in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Premised on the understanding that sustainability is inherently set in neo-liberal discourses of progress, development and growth, we set about to investigate tourism’s performance principally relative to SDG, no. 8 (UN, 2015), which calls for 'decent work'. Underpinned by precarity, an emerging sociological concept applied in the workforce context, and adopting critical approaches, this paper presents a review of a sample of industry reports from global, regional and national levels. The study provides evidence that tourism sustains precarity vis-à-vis its employment practices. Our findings suggest that, counter to prevailing sustainability discourse, tourism (employment) sustains deep social cleavages and economic inequalities – a triumvirate of precariousness of work, precariousness at work and subsequent precariousness of life

One job, one deal...or not: do generations respond differently to psychological contract fulfillment?

This paper investigates generational differences in the relations between psychological contract fulfillment and work attitudes. Data were collected from a sample of 909 employees in the Dutch service sector. Structural equation modeling analyses were used to test the moderating effects of generational differences on the influence of psychological contract fulfillment on affective commitment and turnover intention. The relationship between psychological contract fulfillment and these work outcomes was moderated by generational differences. Furthermore, results indicate that different generations respond differently to different aspects of psychological contract fulfillment, such as career development, job content, organizational policies, social atmosphere and rewards. The study provides evidence that generational differences impact the reciprocal relationship between employer and employee. Results from this study suggest that Baby Boomers and Generation X may be more motivated by social atmosphere, whereas Generation Y may be more motivated by job content and career development. Fair organizational policies are particularly motivating to Generation X, and providing rewards, though more important to Generation Y, seem mostly unrelated to work outcomes. This article is the first to study the moderation of generational differences in the relationships between psychological contract fulfillment and work outcomes

Social identity theory: A role in hotel industry research

This paper addresses the concept of linkage research and proposes social identity theory as an important consideration in managing employee-customer interactions. Following the creation of a conceptual model, this study uses an employee questionnaire, incorporating service climate and employee social identification measures. Service satisfaction, as was employee identification at the superordinate level. The framework proposed and the findings of this study provide management with useful information about how social identity theory can be used to enhance organizational practices in a hotel setting

Generation Y as hospitality employees: Framing a research agenda

This article considers the impact of the new generation of employees entering the hospitality workforce and the changes in management paradigms that will be required to successfully recruit, select, train and motivate Generation Y (Gen Y) to achieve the goals of the organisation, given the strategic importance of human resource management in creating competitive and sustainable service organizations. This article also analyses the current state of thinking on Gen Y's work-related values, attitudes and behaviours and reviews the research that has been conducted to date on Gen Y in the workplace. A discussion is provided on how these values and attitudes will potentially interact with prevailing hospitality management paradigms, before presenting a research framework that depicts the potential relationships between the key variables and identified themes. Following this, six propositions are presented regarding Gen Y's work-related values and attitudes in relation to hospitality employment. The article concludes with an outline of the intended direction for future research

How some service firms have become part of “service excellence” folklore: An exploratory study

This paper aims to address the concept of customer advocacy through storytelling, urban legends and folklore. The main purpose of the paper is to identify firms that are frequent subjects of positive customer storytelling, and to examine these firms for common practices