Document Type : Causal

Authors

• Hossein Kolami ¹
• Nader Bahloli ²
• Houshang Taghizadeh ³

¹ Department of Public Administration, Tabriz Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tabriz, Iran

² Department of Public Administration, Ta.C., Islamic Azad University, Tabriz, Iran

³ Department of Management, Tabriz Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tabriz, Iran

Abstract

Introduction                                   
Ethical human resource management (E-HRM) refers to an approach in which ethical principles such as justice, transparency, meritocracy, accountability, responsibility, and organizational support are integrated into human resource policies and practices. In public organizations, E-HRM is particularly important because human resource decisions can affect administrative integrity, public trust, organizational justice, and the quality of public services. This issue is especially relevant to agricultural organizations because they interact with diverse stakeholders, including farmers, rural communities, governmental institutions, and agricultural experts.
Despite growing research on ethical human resource management, there is still a need for context-specific models that reflect the characteristics of public agricultural organizations in Iran. Therefore, this study aimed to design a model of ethical human resource management for the Agricultural Jihad Organization of East Azerbaijan Province and identify its main dimensions and components.
Methodology
The theoretical foundation of the study was based on Social Exchange Theory, Organizational Justice Theory, and Stakeholder Theory. Social Exchange Theory emphasizes reciprocity, trust, and organizational support; Organizational Justice Theory highlights fairness and transparency in organizational decisions and procedures; and Stakeholder Theory emphasizes organizational responsibility toward groups affected by organizational activities.
Based on these perspectives, justice, transparency, meritocracy, accountability, responsibility, organizational support, and attention to stakeholders were considered the main theoretical foundations of the initial conceptual framework.
The study was applied in terms of purpose and qualitative and exploratory in terms of approach and nature. A qualitative approach was appropriate because the research sought to identify and interpret the experiences and perceptions of experts concerning ethical human resource management within a specific organizational context.
Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 17 experts, managers, specialists, and university faculty members who had relevant knowledge and experience in human resource management, organizational management, organizational ethics, and agricultural administration. Participants were selected purposively, with snowball sampling used when necessary. Interviews continued until theoretical saturation was achieved.
The interview questions focused on ethical recruitment and selection, training and development, performance appraisal, employee retention, managerial support, organizational barriers, stakeholder participation, continuous improvement, and requirements for implementing E-HRM.
Data were analyzed using thematic analysis based on the Attride-Stirling approach. Initially, 652 initial codes were extracted. After reviewing similarities and conceptual overlaps, redundant codes were merged and irrelevant codes were removed. The final analysis resulted in 45 basic themes, 15 organizing themes, and five overarching themes. Credibility was enhanced through expert review, participant validation, and systematic documentation of the analytical process.
 
Findings

Ethical-Oriented Recruitment and Selection: This dimension emphasizes meritocracy, transparency, fairness, and competency-based selection, avoidance of discrimination and favoritism, and consideration of ethical and behavioral competencies.
Ethical-Oriented Training and Development: This dimension includes educational governance, professional competency development, organizational learning, and ethical and behavioral competency development. The findings indicate that ethical behavior requires continuous learning rather than reliance solely on formal rules.
Ethical-Oriented Performance Appraisal: This dimension consists of fairness and transparency in evaluation, assessment of professional competencies, evidence-based appraisal, accountability, and continuous performance improvement.
Ethical-Oriented Employee Retention: This dimension includes organizational justice and support, employee empowerment and development, professional growth opportunities, respect, and an ethical and healthy work environment.
Requirements for Improvement and Sustainability: This dimension includes managerial and organizational requirements, continuous learning and improvement, stakeholder participation, feedback, knowledge management, environmental adaptation, and future orientation.

Thus, the proposed model consists of five overarching themes, 15 organizing themes, and 45 basic themes, indicating that ethical human resource management is a comprehensive process extending across the entire human resource management cycle.
 
Discussion and Conclusion
The findings demonstrate that ethical human resource management cannot be limited to individual ethical behavior or a single HR function. Rather, ethical principles should be integrated into recruitment, training and development, performance appraisal, employee retention, and continuous organizational improvement.
The findings concerning ethical recruitment are consistent with previous studies emphasizing meritocracy, fairness, and ethical values in recruitment and managerial appointments. The results regarding ethical training and development support previous research highlighting the importance of education, ethical awareness, and competency development in promoting administrative integrity. The findings on ethical performance appraisal are also consistent with studies emphasizing transparency, justice, and evidence-based evaluation. Regarding employee retention, the findings support research showing the importance of organizational support, fairness, employee development, and work–family considerations. Finally, the emphasis on continuous improvement and sustainability is consistent with recent studies highlighting organizational capacity, ethical leadership, and sustainable HRM in public-sector organizations.
Overall, the study concludes that implementing E-HRM in the Agricultural Jihad Organization requires the institutionalization of ethical principles throughout the human resource management cycle. The proposed model can provide a practical framework for improving meritocracy, transparency, justice, accountability, administrative integrity, and the quality of public services. Because the study was qualitative and conducted within a specific organizational and provincial context, the findings should be generalized cautiously. Future studies are recommended to quantitatively test the proposed model, examine it in other provinces and governmental organizations, conduct comparative studies, and investigate its relationship with employee performance, organizational commitment, administrative integrity, job satisfaction, and stakeholder satisfaction.

Keywords

• Ethical Human Resource Management
• Agricultural Jihad Organization
• Thematic Analysis
• Indigenous Model
• Public Organizations

Main Subjects

• Modeling