Local isomorphism constitutes the regulatory, cognitive and normative profile of a host country. The regulatory institutional setting reflects the rules and legislation governing collective bargaining agreements, trade unions, local content laws and employment relationships. The cultural or cognitive dimension supports the widely held cultural and social knowledge and the normative profile acknowledges the influences of social groups and organizations on acceptable normative behaviour. Earlier literature lends support to the importance of institutional profile and its influence on the design and implementation of multinational enterprises’ human resource management policies and practices. This paper seeks to advance the concept of local isomorphism and highlight the implications of local isomorphism for future research on the transfer of multinational enterprises’ human resource management practices across and between subsidiaries.

This paper explores empirical data from human resources practitioners and employees to define the ways in which organisations respond to complaints about workplace bullying in New Zealand. Despite recommendations that organisations take workplace bullying seriously and increasing research in recent years, little evidence exists of improvements in the management of this problem. Indeed, this study adds to the gloom by providing an account of the ways in which a group of organisations failed to take responsibility for the welfare of their employees and members. A selection of disappointing responses to requests for help, and some possible explanations for these responses, is presented. Crucially, a set of terms for identifying organisational inaction towards full resolution of workplace bullying is introduced, resolving some aspects of denotative hesitancy in this area. Defining the approaches that hinder resolution of workplace bullying may contribute to its reduction.