GREEN HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AND EMPLOYEE CREATIVITY IN HOSPITALITY FIRMS IN RIVERS STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between Green Human Resource Management (HRM) practices and employee creativity in hospitality firms in Rivers State, Nigeria. As hospitality firms increasingly adopt environmentally sustainable HR practices to enhance organisational performance and competitiveness, understanding their influence on employee creativity has become essential. Green HRM practices were measured using green training and development and green employee participation/involvement, while employee creativity was assessed through innovative work behaviour and idea generation. The study was anchored on the Ability–Motivation-Opportunity (AMO) Theory and Social Exchange Theory. A cross-sectional survey design was adopted. The study population comprised 600 employees drawn from eight purposively selected hospitality firms in Rivers State, Nigeria. A sample size of 240 respondents was determined using the Taro Yamane formula and proportionately distributed among the selected firms. A total of 240 questionnaires (100%) were administered, 226 (94.17%) were successfully retrieved, representing the response rate used for analysis, while 14 (5.83%) were not returned. No questionnaire was invalid, resulting in 226 valid copies (94.17%) used for the analysis. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient (PPMC) at a 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that green training and development and green employee participation/involvement have strong positive relationships with innovative work behaviour and idea generation. The study concludes that Green HRM practices enhance employee creativity by fostering innovative thinking and workplace involvement. It therefore recommends that hospitality firms provide continuous green training, promote employee participation in environmental initiatives, and create supportive work environments that encourage creativity and innovation.