The role of training and empowerment in environmental performance A study of the Mexican maquiladora industry

Purpose - The purpose of this study to propose a model that links the following human resource (HR) factors: employee environmental empowerment, employee environmental training, employee environmental teamwork, managerial environmental empowerment and managerial environmental training, to environmental performance as perceived by managers. Design/methodology/approach - A survey was administered to 220 manufacturing organizations in Mexico. The survey instrument was self-report format with attitudinal variables. Items were adopted from previously published scales. A hypothesized model of the variable relationships with structural equation modelling analysis was tested. Findings - The results suggest that managers perceive that both environmental training and environmental empowerment are important to themselves and employees. In this study, overall environmental training had a stronger relationship with the dependent variables than environmental empowerment. In the case of the employee level, the effects were mediated through environmental teamwork. Originality/value - This study contributes to both theory and praxis. First, it extends the literature related to environmental management and HR management. Second, it examines managerial perceptions of the HR role within the firm for both manager/supervisors and hourly/direct workers. Third, the study is one of the first to investigate the relationships between HR factors and environmental issues in Mexican manufacturing firms. Finally, the study has important implications for practitioners in the manufacturing sector.