Predictors of the Adoption of LGBT-Friendly HR Policies

Are female directors more employee-friendly? Board gender diversity and employee benefits: evidence from China

The imperative of gender diversity in corporate governance and the adoption of a human-centric governance paradigm are intensifying globally. The structure of board directors, key influencers to corporate decisions, notably shape policies, crucially in emerging markets like China where gender issues are still evolving. Therefore, employing a penal dataset comprising 8,973 firm-year observations from publicly A-share-listed Chinese firms spanning 2006 to 2021, this study empirically examines the impact of board gender diversity on the responsiveness to both employee monetary incentives and non-monetary rewards. The findings unveil a positive correlation, indicating an augmentation in per-employee compensation and an increased likelihood of implementing non-monetary programs, including stock-ownership plans, retirement benefits, and occupational safety certification, in the presence of higher board gender diversity. Notably, these positive associations are more accentuated in state-owned firms, as well as those with lower executive compensation and diminished institutional ownership. Our results remain consistent after considering robustness as well as endogeneity. This empirical evidence not only contributes robust statistical support to the ongoing global initiatives advocating for gender diversity in corporate governance but also underscores the efficacy of boards of directors in effectively managing stakeholder interests, particularly in fostering employee-friendly practices within emerging markets like China.

Evaluating Board Candidates: A Threat-Contingency Model of Shareholder Dissent Against Female Director Candidates

Given the growing corporate social responsibility (CSR) pressures to increase board gender diversity and the scrutiny afforded to firms that fail to appoint female directors, one may expect shareholders to vote with greater support for women (than for men) nominated to boards. However, diversity management research suggests that pressures to improve female representation in organizations and in leadership roles may also backfire. We propose a threat-contingency model of shareholder dissent against female director candidates to explain when shareholders will be more or less likely to dissent against female (relative to male) directors. Specifically, we advance CSR legitimacy threats and agency threats as conditions contextualizing shareholder dissent against female director candidates. Using a sample of 50,202 director elections at 1,104 public firms from 2003 to 2015, we find that female directors receive less dissent from shareholders; further, low female board representation intensifies this leniency as CSR legitimacy threats become more salient. However, when firm-related agency threats occur (e.g., firm underperformance and media controversies), shareholders’ leniency toward female director candidates dissipates, and when directors themselves present agency threats (e.g., director attendance problems and nonindependence), shareholders evaluate female directors more harshly than male directors. Underlining the relevance of our theory, our supplementary analyses show that shareholder dissent increases the probability of director turnover. These findings contribute to theory and research on women on boards, firm responses to institutional pressures, and shareholder dissent.

The role of sexual orientation in entrepreneurial intention: the case of Parisian LGB people

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role that sexual orientation can play in entrepreneurial intention.

Design/methodology/approach

By conducting a survey on a sample of 654 individuals and, among them, 266 LGB people in the Paris region (France), and using linear regressions, The authors test the impact of sexual orientation on the antecedents of entrepreneurial intention, as defined by Ajzen (1991), and on entrepreneurial intention.

Findings

The study reveals that LGB people express a higher entrepreneurial intention than non-LGB people. The study also reveals that sexual orientation positively impacts the three antecedents of entrepreneurial intention, namely attitudes, perceived behavioral control and subjective norms.

Research limitations/implications

The study was conducted in a specific context: an LGB-friendly region and among a population of well-educated people. One could also have investigated the impact of femininity and masculinity on entrepreneurial intention among this population.

Practical implications

LGB people adopt entrepreneurial cognition different to that of other minorities, which tends to confirm that LGB entrepreneurial norms and beliefs are not really the same as those of the dominant culture. The study sheds light on the key antecedent one has to work on to increase the entrepreneurial intention of LGB people.

Originality/value

This study reveals that LGB people, even in friendly LGB geographical areas, are still suffering from a lack of self-esteem. The study also confirms that creating any new venture, as job creation process, is perceived as to be the alternative to difficult employment.

Discrimination des minorités sexuelles et de genre au travail : quelles implications pour la santé mentale ?

Malgré les avancées législatives en matière d’égalité au travail pour les minorités sexuelles et de genre (MSG), les données disponibles permettent de constater la persistance des discriminations en milieu de travail envers les personnes lesbiennes, gaies et bisexuelles, et surtout, envers les personnes transsexuelles/transgenres. Cet article, basé sur une revue de la littérature, explore les liens entre les différents vécus de discrimination en milieu de travail et leurs impacts sur la santé mentale chez les MSG et chez différentes sous-populations : hommes ayant des relations sexuelles avec d’autres hommes, femmes non hétérosexuelles, parents lesbiennes et gais, et personnes trans. De plus, l’article explore certains facteurs de protection et de risque individuels et systémiques qui interviennent dans cette relation, entre autres le dévoilement de l’orientation sexuelle ou de l’identité de genre et le soutien organisationnel. Finalement, la littérature sur la discrimination en milieu de travail et la santé mentale des MSG met en lumière l’importance, dans le contexte actuel, des approches intersectionnelles et des études sur les micro-agressions. Pour terminer, l’article discute les implications pour les milieux de pratique, de recherche et de travail tout en formulant plusieurs recommandations.