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21 – 30 of 218Marco Polo Tello and Walter E. Greene
Among the problems of the in‐bond (maquiladora) assembly plants in Mexico, voluntary turnover is a complex phenomenon, difficult to assess and solve. Although caused by several…
Abstract
Among the problems of the in‐bond (maquiladora) assembly plants in Mexico, voluntary turnover is a complex phenomenon, difficult to assess and solve. Although caused by several factors, previous research has demonstrated that social, labour, organizational and cultural variables are closely linked to the turnover problem. To study the strategies that managers use to retain workers in their companies in the USA and how they apply those strategies to subsidiaries in Mexico, selects 13 multinationals with headquarters in north east Ohio and plant operations in Mexico and interviews were conducted with human resources top executives. Finds that each one of the companies has adapted and implemented similar policies consistent with the factors previously identified. On balance, it appears that US multinationals are beginning to address this voluntary turnover problem effectively.
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In the last decades, migration of domestic workers and, in particular, care workers has grown into a significant part of movement from the global South to the global North. This…
Abstract
Purpose
In the last decades, migration of domestic workers and, in particular, care workers has grown into a significant part of movement from the global South to the global North. This phenomenon is referred to as the “new international division in social reproductive work” – outsourcing domestic chores to (mostly) migrants enables families in the global North to escape from the tensions arising from balancing productive and social reproductive work. This paper seeks to address these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
Considering two empirical examples of stereotypically male and female migrant domestic work – Polish handymen and elderly care workers – this paper puts the phenomenon in the context of the broader feminist debate on care work, global care chains and social policies.
Findings
It attempts to analyze how the employment of Polish handymen or elderly care workers in Germany results from and recreates social inequalities based on gender, class and ethnicity/citizenship.
Originality/value
For this purpose, it looks at both “ends” of this specific European “care chain” – the employing families in Germany as well as the migrant's families in Poland.
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Jason James Woldt, Sameer Prasad and Jasmine Tata
The purpose of this paper is to examine the flow of refugees through the dual lens of supply chain management and national cultural values.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the flow of refugees through the dual lens of supply chain management and national cultural values.
Design/methodology/approach
The proposed model is first developed based upon an extensive literature review. The model is then applied to an example of migrants from Honduras traveling to the USA and those being repatriated back to Honduras.
Findings
The connection between national cultural values and elements of refugee supply chain management is identified in this research. The model examines four elements of refugee supply chain management (relationship continuity, partner involvement and development, inter-organizational communication, and network structure), and identifies the influence of these four elements on integrative and collaborative processes along the supply chain and, consequently, on the delivery of services to the refugees (refugee network performance).
Research limitations/implications
The model presented in this paper is tested using a single case and does not utilize an empirical methodology.
Practical implications
This research enables local municipalities and state entities along international migration paths to better manage their relationships with upstream/downstream players and improve refugee network performance by reducing transit time, lowering overall costs, ensuring the health and safety of the refugees, and identify eligible refugees (those likely to gain asylum) to support. Furthermore, the model provides specific recommendations for international Non-Governmental Organizations to help with the integrative and collaborative processes among the supply chain partners.
Originality/value
This research provides a unique perspective in examining the flow of refugees within the context of an international supply chain. The authors look at the critical players along refugee supply chains and develop a model that connects elements of refugee supply chain management with the cultural characteristics of nations.
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Agnieszka Nowinska and Marte C.W. Solheim
The purposes of this paper are to delve into the “liability of foreignness” among immigrants and to explore factors that may enhance or moderate such liability while obtaining…
Abstract
Purpose
The purposes of this paper are to delve into the “liability of foreignness” among immigrants and to explore factors that may enhance or moderate such liability while obtaining jobs in host countries. We explore the competition for jobs in a host country among foreign-born individuals from various backgrounds and local residents, by examining such factors as their human capital, as well as, for the foreign-born, their duration of residence in the host country.
Design/methodology/approach
Applying configurational theorizing, we propose that the presence of specific human capital can help reduce the challenges associated with the “liability of foreignness” for migrants who have shorter durations of stay in the host country, and, to a lesser extent, for female migrants. Our study draws upon extensive career data spanning several decades and involving 249 employees within a Danish multinational enterprise.
Findings
We find that specific human capital helps established immigrants in general, although female immigrants are more vulnerable. We furthermore find a strong “gender liability” in the industry even for local females, including returnees in the host countries. Our findings suggest that for immigrants, including returnees, career building requires a mix of right human capital and tenure in the host country, and that career building is especially challenging for female immigrants.
Originality/value
While the concept of “liability of foreignness” – focussing on discrimination faced by immigrants in the labour market – has been brought to the fore, a notable gap exists in empirical research pertaining to studies aiming at disentangling potential means to overcome such liability, as well as in studies seeking to explore this issue from a stance of gendered experience.
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Abstract
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Kathryn Connors, Dean V. Coonrod, Patricia Habak, Stephanie Ayers and Flavio Marsiglia
This chapter examines birth outcomes of patients enrolled in Familias Sanas (Healthy Families), an educational intervention designed to reduce health disadvantages of low-income…
Abstract
Purpose
This chapter examines birth outcomes of patients enrolled in Familias Sanas (Healthy Families), an educational intervention designed to reduce health disadvantages of low-income, immigrant Latina mothers by providing social support during and after pregnancy.
Methodology/approach
Using a randomized control-group design, the project recruited 440 pregnant Latina women, 88% of whom were first generation. Birth outcomes were collected through medical charts and analyzed using regression analysis to evaluate if there were any differences between patients enrolled in Familias Sanas compared to those patients who followed a typical prenatal course.
Findings
Control and intervention groups were found to be similar with regard to demographic characteristics. In addition, we did not observe a decrease in rate of a number of common pregnancy-related complications. Likewise, rates of operative delivery were similar between the two groups as were fetal weight at delivery and use of regional anesthesia at delivery.
Research limitations/implications
The lack of improvements in birth outcomes for this study was perhaps because this social support intervention was not significant enough to override long-standing stressors such as socioeconomic status, poor nutrition, genetics, and other environmental stressors.
Originality/value of chapter
This study was set in an inner-city, urban hospital with a large percentage of patients being of Hispanic descent. The study itself is a randomized controlled clinical trial, and data were collected directly from electronic medical records by physicians.
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Karla Maria Nava-Aguirre, Itzel Zarate-Solis and Jose Luis Rojas-Vazquez
Economic and social inequality in Mexico presents a challenge in the transformative recovery of the country. This chapter aims to identify opportunities and multi-actor actions in…
Abstract
Economic and social inequality in Mexico presents a challenge in the transformative recovery of the country. This chapter aims to identify opportunities and multi-actor actions in the different scenarios of economic growth and sustainable development for Mexico in the coming years. We managed to propose public policy recommendations for the country by building future scenarios along with the participation of representatives from government, business, civil society and academia. A regenerative Mexico by 2030 requires policies that encourage private, domestic and foreign investment; regulatory frameworks for investment in clean technologies; implementation of tax incentives to promote a green economy and cooperative and inclusive models, such as the social and solidarity economy. Inclusive and collaborative multi-actor actions among the country's sectors become the common denominator of future scenarios for Mexico from an optimistic, resilient and hopeful perspective for its population.
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Drawing on the survey of Spanish-speaking immigrant and migrant readers in Canada and the US, this study pursues three goals: (1) examine the image of the library held by these…
Abstract
Purpose
Drawing on the survey of Spanish-speaking immigrant and migrant readers in Canada and the US, this study pursues three goals: (1) examine the image of the library held by these readers and trace the change of this image after the international migration; (2) use the study findings to revise and update the currently existing typologies of the image of the library; and (3) understand ethical and effective research practices in the studies of immigrant/migrant communities whereby researchers are external to communities in question.
Design/methodology/approach
The data about immigrant/migrant readers were collected through a self-administered survey questionnaire that was available both in print and electronically, both in Spanish and English. The data analysis was guided by hermeneutic phenomenology, as explicated in the article. Theoretical examination of the image of the library relied on the earlier typology developed by V. Stelmakh.
Findings
The study elucidates perceptions of libraries and librarians in both North America and countries of origin held by Spanish-speaking immigrant/migrant readers, and highlights changes that occur in the image of the library as readers move across geographic borders. Building on the empirical data, the article develops a new typology of the image of the library. It also offers insight into ethical and effective ways of engaging with immigrant communities that should be upheld by researchers from outside the communities in question.
Originality/value
It is the first known study that systematically traces the changes in the image of the library which occur alongside geographic and sociocultural migrations. It is also the first known study that focuses specifically on readers rather than library users in general. The new typology consists of four different elements – the cultural image; the functional image; the humanistic image; and the ideological image of the library – and is accompanied by detailed definitions of each.
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