Fairness of reward for academics: perception disparity between academics and senior HR managers

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Abstract

This study addresses the growing concern regarding the perceived fairness of rewards within the English Higher Education (HE) sector, particularly among academics, through the lens of organisational justice theory (OJT). While the importance of perceived fairness is well documented, there is limited understanding of how these perceptions align or differ between academics and the senior HR managers responsible for their reward systems. Drawing on interviews with senior HR managers from 20 English universities and responses from 88 academics to open-ended questionnaires, this research investigated the views of both groups on the fairness of academic rewards. Thematic analysis revealed significant differences in perceptions of fairness of reward between academics and senior HR managers.

This study has three main findings: first, justice elements are interrelated yet senior HR managers often view them in isolation, overlooking how workload and administrative burdens affect fairness perceptions; second, distributive justice plays a pivotal role in shaping perceptions of fairness; third, disparity exists in the use of reward comparators with academics prioritising internal equity, while senior HR managers focus on external benchmarking. These findings highlight the need for HE institutions to narrow the perception gap between senior HR managers and academics, as addressing these differences can lead to a perceived fairer working environment within academic institutions.
Original languageEnglish
Number of pages17
JournalStudies in Higher Education
Early online date20 Jan 2025
DOIs
Publication statusEarly online - 20 Jan 2025

Keywords

  • Fairness
  • justice
  • reward and recognition
  • academics
  • senior human resource managers

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