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Work–family conflict (WFC) has emerged as a challenging issue all over the world. Based on identity, scarcity, basic human values and crossover theories, we examined how life role salience, value of self-enhancement, gender and spouse’s emotional stability affect WFC. Data were collected using questionnaires from 167 dual-earner couples in Sri Lanka. All the variables, except for emotional stability, were measured from the focal employee concerned. Emotional stability was measured from the spouse. Four moderated multiple regressions were conducted to test the proposed model. This study found that a higher level of occupational role salience predicts work-to-family conflict. Further, results indicated that a higher value of self-enhancement increases work-to-family conflict, gender determines the level of family-to-work conflict, and spouse’s emotional stability directly crossovers to reduce family-to-work conflict of the other spouse. Hence, it is evident that not only individual factors but factors related to significant others such as spouses also create WFC. This research contributes to the advancement of the existing understanding on WFC as life role salience, values and crossover effect of spousal factors are still under-researched areas in work–family literature.

Sexual harassment at the workplace continues to be an issue all over the world. While there are many policies with well laid-out procedures specifying the process to follow when complaints of sexual harassment are received, there is still a lack of knowledge on actual practices of handling sexual harassment complaints and best practices. Data were collected from 35 HR professionals (HRPs) from over 30 companies in Sri Lanka on how sexual harassment complaints were handled. Based on this empirical evidence and literature as well as the theory of organisational justice, a six-stage process that HRPs should follow for a fair, just and effective handling of sexual harassment complaints is proposed. The process comprises of (a) complaint stage, (b) assessment of complaint stage, (c) investigation stage, (d) action stage, (e) appeal stage and (f) post-settlement stage. Best practices of handling sexual harassment complaints identified through the empirical data and literature are also highlighted.

This article defines a person’s environment as a combination of work and family environments by extending the person–environment fit theory to include the family domain. The study extends the person–environment fit construct by including person–job fit, person–organization fit, person–group fit, person–supervisor fit (all in work environment) and person–family fit (family environment). In the two studies that were carried using operational-level employees from various industries, we empirically develop a scale for the new concept person–family fit, validated person–family fit scale and the person–environment fit construct. This study makes several theoretical contributions including defining person–family fit construct, developing a scale to measure the same and confirming its inclusion into the person–environment fit construct. Managerial implications are provided to ensure person–job fit, person–group fit, person–supervisor fit and person–family fit in the working environment.

The current study examines the impact of organizational socialization on employee commitment of executive employees in banking sector of Sri Lanka and the moderating role of protean career orientation. It is hypothesized based on affect theory of social exchange and social exchange theory that organizational socialization has a positive impact on employee’s affective, continuance and normative commitment forms. Further, it is suggested that these three direct relationships are moderated by the protean career orientation of the banking employees based on self-determination theory. These relationships are tested using data collected from a sample of 209 executive employees in the banking industry of Sri Lanka. Data were collected using questionnaire. Data were analysed using SPSS and AMOS. Results showed that there is a positive effect of organizational socialization on the three forms of commitment while no moderator effect of protean career orientation was identified on these direct relationships.

This paper is the guest editorial for this Special Issue on Gender (In)equality in South Asia of the South Asian Journal of Human Resources Management. This paper offers a perspective on the gender (in)equality issues as well as prospects in South Asia. The paper examines equalities and inequalities in national and regional labour markets, national legislative frameworks and within companies and organisations and recognises that women themselves are a heterogeneous group. Further, we introduce the papers included in this special issue representing India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

This article is an account of how the British Council in Pakistan has sought to improve its gender balance. The organization has seen a marked change in its staff profile in recent years. As recently as 2013, there was a stark gender imbalance, with women accounting for barely a quarter of all staff. Further, statistical analysis showed that this picture was skewed according to the office, the pay grade and the department.This case study outlines the research undertaken by the HR team. The findings are presented in this case study. It then describes the actions taken to increase the number of women and to address their underrepresentation in key positions. It concludes with the evaluation of the effectiveness of these management interventions resulting in evidence-based managerial decision making, strategic vision and institutionalization of best practices.This undertaking on gender balancing was deemed integral to the development of a new strategic vision for the British Council in Pakistan. The research challenged several assumptions. It showed that the existing gender imbalance was not a result of cultural factors. Instead it demonstrated that the British Council’s pay and benefits were uncompetitive in the job market.The last three years have seen profound changes in the scale of the organization’s ambitions, its risk appetite, how it operates and its culture. These changes have coincided with a marked increase in women at every level of the organization. The case study emphasizes how equal opportunities and diversity became integral to these strategic changes. It charts how the demographics of British Council teams have altered since 2012 and how this has affected organizational culture. Finally, it presents the continuing challenges that the British Council faces in recruiting, retaining and promoting the best talent available.

This article examines the contribution of perceived gender discrimination to work engagement; the contribution of future time perspective (FTP) to work engagement and more importantly, the moderating role of FTP on the relationship between perceived gender discrimination and work engagement. Based on a social cognitive frame work, it was hypothesized that FTP is positively related to work engagement. Further, it was also expected that FTP would work as a compensatory motivational resource and weaken the negative relationship between gender discrimination and work engagement. These questions were examined using a sample of female employees working in textile and apparel companies in the Chennai and Puducherry regions of India (N= 234). Results indicate that FTP has a positive relationship with physical, cognitive as well as emotional engagement of the respondents. It also moderates significantly the relationship between perceived gender discrimination and cognitive as well as emotional dimensions of work engagement. However, no significant moderating effect appears for the relationship between gender discrimination and physical engagement of these employees.

Post-war Sri Lanka is heavily dependent on the promising future of the Information Technology (IT) industry to contribute considerably to the economic and social development of the country. Given the reported skill shortage and gender imbalance in the IT sector, female participation and retention is greatly advocated and promoted. In this milieu, we aim to understand what happens to female employees in male-dominant IT project teams, and the challenges and issues they face, as well as the related causes, using Kanter’s Theory of Group Proportions as the theoretical lens. Such understanding will provide a backdrop to develop ways and means of attracting and retaining females in the IT industry in Sri Lanka. Employing qualitative inquiry, we carried out in-depth interviews and focus-group discussions with 14 informants—10 female team members and four male team counterparts—from six IT companies. We identified four main challenges and issues females face in working alongside males where females strive to prove their technical and leadership capabilities, gain acceptance of the dominants in the team, overcome role entrapment and gain due recognition for their hard work. In facing these challenges females use various strategies and changes of behaviour which can ultimately lead to work pressure, strained relationships and anxiety for females. While these challenges are largely comparable to the main phenomena and experiences explained by Kanter, it appeared that gender-role stereotyping and sexist attitudes prevailing in the work setting, rather than the numerical minority status of females as mentioned by Kanter, gave rise to these situations.

This policy-oriented article is an ethnographic study of the impact of the economic growth on women in the Eastern and Northern Provinces of Sri Lanka in the aftermath of the civil war. Preliminary indications are that the resurgent economic growth in the former conflict-affected regions have had very limited positive impact on women in terms of livelihood opportunities and economic empowerment. The impediments to realizing the opportunities by women are identified through ethnographic investigation and a consultative process with key stakeholders. Programmes and projects could and should be developed to address the profound difficulties faced by women in taking advantage of the opportunities spurred by the resurgent regional economies of Sri Lanka during the post-civil war era.