Digitalization-Driven Green HRM Practices and Employee Green Behavior in a Metropolitan Municipality

Abstract

This study examines the association between digitalization-enabled green human resource management (GHRM) practices and employee green behavior (EGB) within a South African metropolitan municipality. Anchored in an extended Ability–Motivation–Opportunity (AMO) framework, a convergent mixed-methods design was employed. Quantitative data were collected from 66 HR employees (from a target population of 80) and analyzed using Spearman’s correlation and hierarchical regression, while qualitative data from seven HR managers were analyzed thematically. Results indicate statistically significant positive associations between digital green training (ρ = 0.524, p < 0.01) and EGB, and between digital performance management (ρ = 0.463, p < 0.01) and EGB. However, regression estimates suggest moderate explanatory power within this context-specific public-sector setting. Qualitative findings identify automation, paperless systems, and e-HRM tools as key digital enablers, alongside infrastructural constraints, skills deficits, and institutional barriers that limit implementation. By integrating quantitative associations with qualitative evidence of implementation gaps, the study proposes a Digitalization-Integrated GHRM–EGB framework and demonstrates that digital HR systems are associated with pro-environmental workplace behaviors, contingent on organizational readiness in resource-constrained municipal environments.