The Green Happy Productive Worker: Environmental Satisfaction as Mediator Between Green Human Resources Practices and Green Extra-Role Behaviors in Social Economy Organizations

Abstract

The urgency of addressing global environmental concerns creates the pressure to “go green” for all competitive organizations and to implement Green Human Resources Management (GHRM) Practices. This tendency is even more pressing in social economy organizations, due to their triple bottom approach. However, it is not clear how GHRM can be translated into employees' daily green extra-role behavior. Adapting the happy-productive worker thesis to the environmental context, this study aims at understanding the relationship between GHRM practices and green extra-role behaviors over time, as well as the mediator role of environmental satisfaction in this relationship. To test our hypothesis, we have used a two-points time measurement, with the participation of 425 employees from social economy organizations. We have run a SEM with Monte Carlo simulation. The results show a negative direct effect of GHRM practices (Time 1) on green extra-role behavior (Time 2) and a positive direct effect on environmental satisfaction (Time 2). Additionally, environmental satisfaction is positively related to green extra-role behavior (Time 2). Interestingly, GHRM practices have a positive indirect effect on green extra-role behavior through environmental satisfaction. This builds on previous research on the relationship between satisfaction and performance and has important implications at the theoretical level, as it advances on understanding the relationship between GRHM practices and green extra-role behaviors and how this negative relationship changes according to environmental satisfaction. Additionally, the findings have also practical implications, mainly related to the efficacy of translating the GRHM practices in employees' green extra-role behavior with or without the mediation of variables related to wellbeing, in this case, environmental satisfaction.