Variable Work Schedules, Unit-Level Turnover, and Performance Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Chung, Hyesook
• 署名单位: Cornell University
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF APPLIED PSYCHOLOGY
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0021-9010
• DOI: 10.1037/apl0001006
• 发表日期: 2022
• 页码: 515-532
• 关键词: variable work schedules; staffing flexibility; unit-level turnover; organizational performance; Covid-19

摘要

The use of variable work schedules (VWS)-altering the number and timing of employees' work hours on a daily or weekly basis-is an increasingly common human resource (HR) practice designed to increase staffing flexibility. Little research, however, has examined whether and how the use of VWS affects an organization's turnover rates and/or financial performance at the unit level. Despite the common assumption that their use helps firms achieve higher performance by matching the supply of labor to demand fluctuations-especially during a crisis such as coronavirus disease (COVID-19)-this study demonstrates otherwise. I propose that greater use of variable schedules can lead to higher turnover rates and that this effect has been more pronounced during the pandemic. I also argue that managerial reliance on VWS can decrease not only the level of financial performance but also performance recovery during the pandemic-with unit-level turnover as the mediating mechanism. Using data from 1,678 units of a U.S. 4 quick-service restaurant chain across different phases of the COVID-19 pandemic (October 2019-December 2020), I find support for these predictions. Results suggest that scholars and practitioners should reconsider the general assumption that staffing flexibility helps organizations adapt to uncertain environments.