Online social networking and work-family balance: friends or foes?

To date, the majority of research in relation to online social networking (OSN) has focused on its separate influences on either the family domain or the workplace domain. This study brings together the elements of family satisfaction and work satisfaction to explore whether OSN increases the conflict between work and family domains. Analysing the data from a web-based survey distributed across Australia (n=379) suggested OSN is a predictor of work-family conflict

More to life than promotion: Self-initiated and self-resigned career plateaus

Being on a career plateau is widely regarded as an undesirable career experience characterised by a lack of individual proactivity, ability, or opportunity for promotion. In this paper, we present an alternative view arguing that some employees may choose to plateau their careers and deliberately forego opportunities for hierarchical progression. Drawing on in-depth interviews with 75 law enforcement officers in the US and Australia, we explore why they declined a promotion opportunity or elected not to apply for promotion. Drawing on social cognitive career theory, we develop a provisional taxonomy characterised by individual proactivity: self-initiated and self-resigned career plateaus. Specifically, we report how the decision to remain on either of these career plateaus is informed by either the low valence accorded to a promoted position or, paradoxically, the reduced self-efficacy in navigating what is viewed as a flawed promotion system

More to life than promotion: Self-initiated and self-resigned career plateaus

Being on a career plateau is widely regarded as an undesirable career experience characterised by a lack of individual proactivity, ability, or opportunity for promotion. In this paper, we present an alternative view arguing that some employees may choose to plateau their careers and deliberately forego opportunities for hierarchical progression. Drawing on in-depth interviews with 75 law enforce-ment officers in the US and Australia, we explore why they declined a promotion opportunity or elected not to apply for promotion. Drawing on social cognitive career theory, we develop a provisional taxonomy characterised by individual proactivity: self-initiated and self-resigned career plateaus. Specifically, we report how the decision to remain on either of these career plateaus is informed by either the low valence accorded to a promoted position or, paradoxically, the reduced self-efficacy in navigating what is viewed as a flawed promotion system

The unanticipated road to skills wastage for skilled migrants: the non-recognition of overseas qualifications and experience (ROQE)

Skilled migration has become a significant strategy for meeting skill demands and shortages in Australia; however, many skilled migrants experience barriers to securing employment which creates an array of social and economic insecurities and vulnerabilities. Those whose overseas qualifications and work experience are not recognised in host countries will often experience skill wastage and atrophy and exploitation. The recognition of overseas qualifications and experience (ROQE) has been identified as a ‘central immigration issue of the new century … in all post-industrial societies receiving immigrants’. For many skilled migrants, ROQE creates a barrier for securing employment commensurate with qualifications and experience and thereby creates skills wastage and downward mobility. The aim of this paper is to analyse ROQE through the dual theoretical lenses of human capital theory and the critical analyses of knowledge hierarchies. Data from a survey of skilled migrants in Western Australia are used to compare the occupations of skilled migrants prior to entering Australia and their current occupation. The paper offers a dual lens theoretical analysis of the problematic ROQE phenomenon and concludes with policy- and practice-based strategies that would assist in reducing skills wastage and the exploitation of skilled migrants

Constant connectivity and boundary management behaviors: the role of human agency

The surge of remote and hybrid work in the post-pandemic era has reinforced the blurred boundaries between work and nonwork responsibilities. Thus, how people manage the boundaries between work and nonwork domains has become more complicated. This study advances the work of previous studies on constant connectivity by focusing on how employees’ perception of constant connectivity might actualize their boundary management behaviors. By adopting affordances for practice perspective, our study focused on contextual factors, including IT/internet policies, informal social norms, and work flexibility, to investigate how these factors could influence employees’ perception of constant connectivity. This paper reports a two-phase study. In the first phase, we used sentiment analysis to rank 38 internet use policies of Australian universities, grading their strictness toward ICT/internet use. Next, building on the first phase, we interviewed 28 academics. We identified three perceptions of constant connectivity related to participants’ practices, including constant connectivity as a resource for practice, a challenge for practice, and duality for practice. We also found five distinct boundary management behaviors connected to three different perceptions

The Job Seeking Experiences of International Graduates in the Host Country: Australia’s Lost Opportunity?

This paper examines the job seeking experiences of international graduates in attempting to obtain meaningful work in their university education host country. Qualitative feedback on the specific job seeking barriers and experiences in the host country after graduating were provided by 696 respondents. The findings suggest that the specific barriers to finding employment were their visa status, lack of work experience and perceived discriminatory practices of potential employers and/or their agents. The study also suggests that the discriminatory employment experiences of international university graduates demonstrate a lack of congruence between the concept of best fit in hiring decision making and a culturally diverse Australian labour market. Not only do the current practices limit the source of potential highly educated, skilled and culturally aware employees into the labour market of the host country, it also severely compromises an organisation’s ability to achieve workplace diversity; a strategic outcome necessary to compete within a highly competitive global economy