Unsustainable Urban Development Based on Temporary Workers: A Study on the Changes of Immigration in Macau between 1992 and 2019

Macau's urban development model has many unique characteristics, including expansion of the city through sea reclamation, increasing population mainly through immigration, and economic development driven by the gaming industry. Based on data from the Macau Statistics and Census Service, this study uses the Error Correction representation of the Autoregressive Distributed Lag model (ARDL-ECM) to analyze the impact of urban development on the trends of immigration and labor migration in Macau between 1992 and 2019. Results show that both land area and wage level have positive effects on the number of migrant workers and negative effects on the number of immigrants, indicating that Macau is over-dependent on short-term migrant workers. Macau's land and human resources are tilted towards the gaming industry, resulting in a decreasing living environment and resident carrying capacity as the city develops. Therefore, this paper suggests that Macau should reduce the cost of city expansion and improve economic diversity through strengthening cooperation with neighboring mainland cities, hence sparing resources to absorb non-local talent and ensuring sustainable urban development.

Context and culture: a phenomenological study of blue-collar workers in two multicultural workplaces

Labor shortages in blue-collar occupations have become a significant challenge for firms throughout the United States. Naturally, as employers seek to address those shortages, one of the solutions has been the recruitment of immigrant workers. Multiple languages, mores and cultures within the diverse workforces present unique challenges within workplace cultures. Research suggests that intergroup contact between distinct groups, such as racial or ethnic groups, when certain conditions are in place, can have a positive impact on relationships between members of those groups. Additionally, diverse workplace management studies identify management practices that may enhance diverse workforce outcomes. This qualitative grounded theory study explores the question: How do blue-collar workers, both immigrant and U.S.-born working alongside one another, experience their workplace culture? It consists of responses from 15 participants to semi-structured interviews conducted via electronic communications technology (due to COVID-19 restrictions limiting direct researcher/participant contact). The study took place between the months of June and October of 2022. A new theory, the inverse contact outcome theory, was generated. The theory states that, contrary to what might be expected in diverse blue-collar workplaces, a) positive contact outcomes such as reduction of prejudice and conflict may result among same status blue-collar workers from diverse backgrounds despite the lack of institutionally supportive conditions whereas b) negative contact outcomes of prejudice and conflict may not be mitigated among same status blue-collar workers from diverse backgrounds despite the presence of institutionally supportive conditions. The study also revealed that diverse workforce management approaches that include customized socialization, enhanced communication, and status-based hierarchy mitigation, are essential to positive diverse workforce management practice. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Labor shortage: a critical reflection and a call for industry-academia collaboration

Purpose This critical reflection aims to initiate an engaging dialogue about the labor shortage challenge facing the hospitality and tourism (H&T) industry. This paper discusses RQ1. Will the worsening labor shortage challenge improve in the short term? RQ2. How can industry professionals and academic leaders/professors work together to address the labor shortage issue? RQ3. How can academic research help address such a challenge? Design/methodology/approach RQ1 was answered with three propositions in a critical reflection of relevant news updates, industrial/market reports and carefully selected relevant literature. Suggestions were made to respond to RQ2 and RQ3 in three areas of talent management: talent acquisition, learning and development and talent retention. Findings The worsening labor shortage challenge will likely continue for some years due to an imbalance in labor supply/demand. The H&T industry should work closely with the H&T programs (one key supplier of managerial talent) to find solutions to the ongoing problem. Research limitations/implications This reflection focuses only on preliminary suggestions but could inspire related research endeavors. Practical implications This paper suggests numerous industry-academia collaboration initiatives under talent management to address the worsening labor shortage. Social implications A strong industry-academia collaboration would address low enrollment in H&T programs, helping them recruit and retain top students. Eventually, a larger student candidate pool for managerial talent could help the industry meet the shifting labor demand. Originality/value This timely reflection addresses a critical, worsening labor shortage situation in the H&T industry by offering original ideas and calling for a broader and more in-depth discussion among all H&T stakeholders.

COVID-19 Pandemic and Non-standard Employees in Japan

This article aims to grasp the influence of the pandemic on standard and non-standard employees in Japan and clarify its disparity between them. In 2020, there was an imbalance between the slight increase in standard employees and the massive loss of non-standard employees in the labour market. Non-standard employees' working hours were greatly reduced, often without allowances for absence, and hence their monthly income considerably diminished. As a result, their well-being also declined. Thus, the pandemic has affected employment, and its impact has been felt most strongly by non-standard employees. This does not mean that there is no discriminatory treatment of non-standard employees in firms. However, a closer look at the real picture reveals a variety of factors. In addition to the discriminatory treatment that is related to the Japanese employment system, a combination of managerial factors such as the shortage of standard employees, practical factors such as differences in wage systems, and the lack of sufficient information about the expansion of the coverage of the Employment Adjustment Subsidy, have placed non-standard employees at a huge disadvantage.

Teleworking, Work Engagement, and Intention to Quit during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Same Storm, Different Boats?

The ability to retain and engage employees is now, more than ever, a major strategic issue for organizations in the context of a pandemic paired with a persistent labor shortage. To this end, teleworking is among the work organization conditions that merit consideration. The purpose of this cross-sectional study is to examine the direct and indirect effects of teleworking on work engagement and intention to quit, as well as the potential moderating effect of organizational and individual characteristics on the relationship between teleworking, work engagement, and intention to quit during the COVID-19 pandemic, based on a sample of 254 Canadian employees from 18 small and medium organizations. To address these objectives, path analyses were conducted. Overall, we found that teleworking, use of emotion, skill utilization, and recognition appear to be key considerations for organizations that wish to increase work engagement and decrease intention to quit, in the context of a pandemic paired with a labor shortage. Our results extend the literature by revealing the pathways through which teleworking, use of emotion, skill utilization, and recognition are linked to work engagement and intention to quit, and by suggesting specific interventions and formation plans that are needed.

Job Satisfaction and Performance Orientation of Paramedics in German Emergency Medical Services-A Nationwide Survey.

(1) Background: Shortage of skilled workers is a relevant global health care problem. To remain competitive with other professions, job satisfaction is a critical issue; however, to date, there are no data available on the German EMS. This study aims to perform a statistical analysis of job satisfaction and performance orientation and to identify risk factors for low job satisfaction of paramedics in the German EMS. (2) Methods: Data were collected from 2590 paramedics through a nationwide cross-sectional survey, using the job satisfaction questionnaire by Neuberger and Allerbeck and the performance orientation questionnaire by Hippler and Krüger. Descriptive and regression statistical analysis were performed. (3) Results: The participants scored significantly lower than the reference sample on job satisfaction, with "organization and management" and "payment" being the lowest rated subscales. Around 9% of employees feared losing their jobs. While work attitude toward performance and success enhancement was high, fear of failure was also common. (4) Conclusions: Job satisfaction of paramedics in the German EMS is below that of the reference sample. Discontent with payment and organizational issues is common. Performance orientation is high, but fear of failure is frequent. Current and future efforts that aim at an attractive working environment should reflect on these findings.