Contingent and non-contingent working in local government: Contrasting psychological contracts

Given that the contingent worker is likely to be a familiar presence in the public service workplace of the future, this paper explores the consequences of contingent work arrangements on the attitudes and behaviour of employees using the psychological contract as a framework for analysis. Drawing u...

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Main Authors: Kessler, I, Coyle-Shapiro, J
Format: Journal article
Published: 2002
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author Kessler, I
Coyle-Shapiro, J
author_facet Kessler, I
Coyle-Shapiro, J
author_sort Kessler, I
collection OXFORD
description Given that the contingent worker is likely to be a familiar presence in the public service workplace of the future, this paper explores the consequences of contingent work arrangements on the attitudes and behaviour of employees using the psychological contract as a framework for analysis. Drawing upon survey evidence from a sample of permanent, fixed term and temporary staff employed in a British local authority, our results suggest that contract status plays an important role in how individuals view the exchange relationship with their employer and how they respond to the inducements received from that relationship. Specifically, contingent employees are less committed to the organization and engage in organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) to a lesser degree than their permanent counterparts. However, contrary to our hypothesis, the relationship between the inducements provided by the employer and OCB is stronger for contingent employees. Such findings have implications for the treatment of contingent and non-contingent employees in the public services.
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spelling oxford-uuid:08bee947-73ca-4014-9bac-89d84ee8e9492022-03-26T09:14:33ZContingent and non-contingent working in local government: Contrasting psychological contractsJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:08bee947-73ca-4014-9bac-89d84ee8e949Saïd Business School - Eureka2002Kessler, ICoyle-Shapiro, JGiven that the contingent worker is likely to be a familiar presence in the public service workplace of the future, this paper explores the consequences of contingent work arrangements on the attitudes and behaviour of employees using the psychological contract as a framework for analysis. Drawing upon survey evidence from a sample of permanent, fixed term and temporary staff employed in a British local authority, our results suggest that contract status plays an important role in how individuals view the exchange relationship with their employer and how they respond to the inducements received from that relationship. Specifically, contingent employees are less committed to the organization and engage in organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) to a lesser degree than their permanent counterparts. However, contrary to our hypothesis, the relationship between the inducements provided by the employer and OCB is stronger for contingent employees. Such findings have implications for the treatment of contingent and non-contingent employees in the public services.
spellingShingle Kessler, I
Coyle-Shapiro, J
Contingent and non-contingent working in local government: Contrasting psychological contracts
title Contingent and non-contingent working in local government: Contrasting psychological contracts
title_full Contingent and non-contingent working in local government: Contrasting psychological contracts
title_fullStr Contingent and non-contingent working in local government: Contrasting psychological contracts
title_full_unstemmed Contingent and non-contingent working in local government: Contrasting psychological contracts
title_short Contingent and non-contingent working in local government: Contrasting psychological contracts
title_sort contingent and non contingent working in local government contrasting psychological contracts
work_keys_str_mv AT kessleri contingentandnoncontingentworkinginlocalgovernmentcontrastingpsychologicalcontracts
AT coyleshapiroj contingentandnoncontingentworkinginlocalgovernmentcontrastingpsychologicalcontracts