High-performance work practices and core employee wages: evidence from Italian manufacturing plants

Abstract

Past research has provided mixed evidence on the relationship between High-Performance Work Practices (HPWPs) and wages. Drawing from more than 1,800 interviews with the HR managers in a stratified sample of Italian manufacturing plants collected in 2008, the authors argue that the results are inconclusive unless the configurations of the HPWPs and the mechanisms underpinning employee involvement are taken into account. Their results show that HPWPs are associated with higher wages for core employees only when they align with an ideal type, and they result in higher wage equality only when they emphasize training, competence enhancement, and power delegation.