Hence, HR sustainability is a set of skills, motivation, values, and trust created to avoid detrimental environmental effects by adopting justice, development, and welfare. Finally, sustainability is regarded as a shared advantage for stakeholders leading to enduring economic sustainability. Work systems highlight the social aspect of sustainability and intend to expand the perception of mechanisms that result in the implementation and improvement of human resources. Sustainable resource management aims to clarify the association between an organization and the environment and to propose approaches to deal with the scarcity of resources. Accordingly, the sustainability of HRM can be distinguished in three different conceptual approaches: sustainable resource management, sustainable work systems, and sustainable HRM.
Based on the HRM definition proposed by the WCED and the challenging task of defining this concept, scholars have identified the following justifications for HRM sustainability: efficiency-oriented, context-bound, and substance-oriented.
They believed that HRM sustainability is crucial for organizations because of increased occupational health issues, shortage of human resources, and an aging population. argued that it is unwise to disregard HRM as the social aspect of sustainability. Sustainability plays a significant role in determining theoretical and pragmatic human resources relationships and developing new perspectives through a “triple bottom line”, including ecological, economic, and social aspects. However, researchers have not comprehensively identified its capabilities in HRM. They also believed that the sustainability concept has developed since the 1990s. According to researchers, organizational sustainability refers to obviating the stakeholders’ direct or indirect demands while taking care of future stakeholders’ demands. New approaches emphasize that HR capabilities are fundamental for an organization’s improvement and sustainability. Human resource management (HRM) should form functional groups to facilitate collaboration and coordination between an organization’s different components. Furthermore, because of its importance in optimizing costs and improving productivity and quality, HR is recognized as an essential resource for organizations. Human resources (HR) are regarded as the central pillar of an organization’s competitive advantage. Findings indicate that it is essential to consider the implementation of adequate HRM practices and related socio-economic and psychological supports for HRM sustainability in universities that can lead to the competitiveness of the higher education institutions such as universities.
The findings show that human resource practices, social factors, psychological factors, employer branding, and economic factors have positive and significant effects on HRM sustainability at universities. A questionnaire with 32 statements based on a 5-point Likert scale was used to collect the data, which were analyzed using PLS3 software. As the study’s statistical population included 2543 employees, a sample size of 334 employees was calculated using the Cochran formula. The study was conducted during the spring and summer of 2020 at Iranian state universities. We use a quantitative research method design to investigate the factors that affect HRM sustainability at universities.
This study aims to investigate achieving HRM sustainability in universities. The sustainability of human resource management (HRM) is the basis for an organization’s future growth and success.