Green HR Accountability and Redistribution Mechanisms: Scale development and validation

This study introduces and validates the Green HR Accountability and Redistribution Mechanisms model, a new framework for understanding the unintended consequences of Green Human Resource Management. Drawing on the labor process tradition, Green HR Accountability and Redistribution Mechanisms conceptualizes three dimensions, that is, eco-intensification, eco-surveillance, and supplier cost-shifting, that explain how accountability for environmental targets and the redistribution of responsibilities can create hidden costs for employees and suppliers. Scale items were developed through theory-driven generation and expert review, then refined in a pilot study (N = 155), and validated with two additional survey data from 432 and 487 respondents subsequently across diverse industries. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses confirmed a robust three-factor structure with strong reliability and validity. Structural equation modeling demonstrated that eco-intensification and eco-surveillance heighten strain, burnout, and turnover intentions while reducing trust and voice, whereas supplier cost-shifting predicts perceptions of precarity. Bright-side Green Human Resource Management practices buffered these adverse effects. Practically, Green HR Accountability and Redistribution Mechanisms is designed as a survey-based diagnostic and audit instrument that organizations can administer to employees and supply chain partners to identify where green HR practices intensify work, extend surveillance, or externalize environmental costs, thereby enabling managers to redesign sustainability initiatives before they undermine employee well-being or labor justice. The Green HR Accountability and Redistribution Mechanisms model thus advances human resource management and sustainability research and offers managers a diagnostic tool for balancing environmental and social goals. JEL Classification: M12, M14, and Q56