Multilevel model of management support and casino employee turnover intention

This study proposed and tested a trickle-down model that manager support at the functional department level affect frontline employees' attitudes toward supervisor support at the operational level and subsequently influence leader-member exchange (LMX), organizational citizenship behavior (OCB), and turnover intentions. Three mediators were identified from the cross-level analysis, namely, supervisor support, group trust, and OCB. A survey collected valid responses from 336 line level casino employees who represent 112 work groups from 39 departments nested in 17 casinos. The hierarchical linear model (HLM) results indicate that (1) supervisor support mediates the relationship between departmental support and individual level LMX, (2) group trust mediates the relationship between supervisor support and hence employee turnover intention, and (3) OCB mediates the relationship between LMX and employee turnover. Our findings have important implications for casino management and operators by developing an efficient management support system to reduce the intention of frontline employees to quit.     

When does an employee not help coworkers? The effect of leader–member exchange on employee envy and organizational citizenship behavior

Using a sample of 233 front-line hotel employees, we examined leader–member exchange (LMX), envy, and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). The results from path analysis support the research model that employees who have a relatively poor working relationship with their supervisor (i.e., low-quality LMX relationship) were more likely to show higher levels of envy than employees who have relatively closer working relationships with the same supervisor (i.e., high-quality LMX relationship). Ultimately, higher levels of envy decreased employee voluntary helping behavior (i.e., organizational citizenship behavior, OCB) toward coworkers. This finding suggests that employees perceiving a poor working relationship with their supervisor committed less voluntary helping behavior toward coworkers than their counterparts. Implications for managers and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

Negative affectivity and tipping: The moderating role of emotional labor strategies and leader-member exchange

Negative affectivity (NA) is a personality trait that is likely to impede hospitality employees’ ability to perform service due to their tendency to experience negative emotions that are inconsistent or even contrary to normative display rules.This study examined whether emotional labor strategies and the quality of the relationship with the manager (i.e., LMX) could help NA employees to perform service (expressed as financial gains measured in tip size).The sample was composed of 304 Israeli restaurant servers. The findings show that NA had a positive effect on tip size when engaging in high surface acting or deep acting; however, this effect was not significant for employees who were less engaged in emotional labor strategies. LMX moderated the relationship between NA and tips such that NA was positively related to tips for employees with a high quality LMX relationship but was negatively related to tips for employees with a low quality LMX relationship.     

The effect of psychological contract fulfillment on manager turnover intentions and its role as a mediator in a casual,limited-service restaurant environment

Job satisfaction is the most consistent predictor of turnover intention; however, its correlation with turnover intention in most studies is modest. Leader–Member Exchange (LMX) has not proven to be a reliable predictor of turnover intention. Meanwhile, the psychological contract has emerged as a useful framework for understanding the employee/employer relationship. In the present research, which utilizes a sample of managers in a casual, limited-service restaurant environment, a structural equation model is developed in which psychological contract fulfillment serves a mediating role between LMX and turnover intention. Psychological contract fulfillment is also found to be a statistically significant predictor of turnover intention. Findings from the study suggest that management turnover may be mitigated if organizational leaders develop strong relationships with their managers based upon respect, trust and mutual obligation and then utilize these relationships to understand and fulfill the unwritten contract perceived to exist between the firm and its management personnel.     

COVID-19: The effects of job insecurity on the job engagement and turnover intent of deluxe hotel employees and the moderating role of generational characteristics

COVID-19 has caused an unprecedented crisis in all industries around the world. This study sought to verify that job insecurity, as perceived by deluxe hotel employees, significantly affects their job engagement and turnover intent and to determine the moderating effect of generational characteristics. The finding showed that perceptions of job insecurity had negative effects on the engagement of deluxe hotel employees. Also, employees’ job engagement can decrease turnover intent. The engagement of employees fully mediated the relationship between perceptions of job insecurity and turnover intent, and job insecurity caused by COVID-19 had a greater influence on Generation Y than Generation X in reducing job engagement, indicating that the negative impact of job insecurity is higher in Generation Y.     

Stephen J. O'Connor,Vice President,University Relations and Property Staffing,Marriott International

ABSTRACT

Leader-member exchange (LMX) is a multidimensional construct seeking to identify the quality of the relationship between the leader and immediate subordinate. An instrument developed by Schrie-sheim, Neider, Scandura, and Tepper (1992) was utilized to determine the LMX score of 798 non-managerial employees in a casual restaurant chain. The dimensions of perceived contribution, affect, and loyalty were examined. Results demonstrate that LMX quality was high among the surveyed employees of a restaurant chain. The scores of LMX on age, gender and job tenure differed among employees while LMX scores on job status, education, and job type did not differ significantly.     

How leader–member exchange,work engagement and HRM consistency explain Chinese luxury hotel employees’ job performance

This paper provides insights into the relationship between leader–member exchange (LMX) and employee job performance. An integrative model that includes work engagement and human resource management (HRM) consistency, defined as the extent to which various HR practices are viewed as consistent with one other, was developed to explain this relationship. Results from a hierarchical linear model based on 298 employees (survey data) and 54 supervisors in a large luxury hotel in southern China indicated that LMX was positively related to employee job performance. Moreover, as expected, work engagement mediated this relationship and HRM consistency strengthened the influence of LMX on work engagement. Important research and practical implications are discussed.     

Consumer aggression and frontline employees’ turnover intention: The role of job anxiety,organizational support,and obligation feeling

In the hospitality industry, frontline employees' turnover poses a challenge because it involves immense human and financial costs. This study innovates by investigating the impact of consumer aggression on frontline employees' turnover intention using conservation of resources and social exchange theories. A survey conducted with 300 frontline employees working for 15 hotels confirms that (1) their job anxiety mediates the relationship between their perceived consumer aggression and their intent to quit; (2) their perceived organizational support reduces the positive relationship between their perceived consumer aggression and their job anxiety; and (3) their felt obligation reduces the positive relationship between their job anxiety and their intent to quit. We discuss managerial implications, limitations, and future research directions.     

Does a leader’s “partiality” affect employees’ proactivity in the hospitality industry? A cross-level analysis

This study examined the impact of leader-member exchange (LMX) differentiation on employees’ proactive customer service performance (PCSP). A cross-level model of LMX differentiation, emotional labor, PCSP, and group positive emotional climate was proposed and tested on a sample of 44 groups consisting of 294 individual frontline employees from 6 hotels located in western, central, and eastern China. The results showed that LMX differentiation at the group level is negatively related to employees’ PCSP, while another variable at the same level, positive emotional climate, is positively related to PCSP. Surface acting and deep acting, two major forms of the regulation of emotional labor, were found to mediate the relationship between LMX differentiation and PCSP. The influence of surface acting and deep acting on the employees’ PCSP is moderated by positive emotional climate at the group level. Additionally, the application of these findings to research and future practice is discussed.     

How can leaders enhance employees' psychological capital? Mediation effect of person-group and person-supervisor fit

Conferring to the leader-member exchange (LMX) theory and social exchange theory as the guiding basis, this inquiry attempts to investigate the mechanism of how servant leaders are able to enhance and elevate the level of psychological capital (PsyCap) among frontline employees in the hospitality setting. Data was gathered from 193 frontline employees in two different waves through a two-week time lag from five-star hotels in North Cyprus. The results proved that servant leader is able to enhance person-group fit (P-G fit) and person-supervisor fit (P-S fit), which in turn affect employees' PsyCap. The results further suggested that both P-G fit and P-S fit both functions as a mediator in the relationship between servant leadership and PsyCap. The abovementioned relationships were assessed using structural equation modeling. Implications for managers as well as directions for future research are also discussed in this study.     

How is leadership related to employee self-concept?

In the field of leadership research, the relationship between leadership styles and follower self-concept was of great interests to researchers. The purpose of this study is to investigate how leadership styles such as transformational leadership, passive leadership and leader-member exchange (LMX) relate to employee self-concept. A total of 585 valid responses were collected from hotel front line employees in mainland China. The results showed that the effect of transformational leadership on self-concept was mainly mediated by LMX. The strong direct effects of LMX on levels of self-concept were also identified in this study. Theoretical and practical implications were provided based on the results of this study.     

Call Center Employees’ Intent to Quit: Examination of Job Engagement and Role Clarity

Call centers have become a valuable resource for hotels in managing customer experiences and relationships, yet they have also developed a reputation for being a stressful job which has made it a significant challenge to retain employees. Given high turnover rates among call center employees, it is important for hospitality firms to understand the factors influencing their intentions to quit. This study focuses on job engagement and role clarity to examine hotel call center employees’ intent to quit. The survey results of call center employees at a large resort hotel suggest that job engagement significantly influences the hotel call center employees’ intent to quit after accounting for job satisfaction and organizational support. Role clarity, however, is not related to intent to quit. Managerial implications and recommendations for increasing employee job engagement are discussed.     

Antecedents and consequences of employees’ job stress in a foodservice industry: Focused on emotional labor and turnover intent

The purpose of this study is to understand the interrelationships among employees’ emotional labor, emotional dissonance, job stress, and turnover intent in the foodservice industry. The study was administered to 338 family-style restaurant employees. The results showed that employees’ emotional labor was positively associated with emotional dissonance, job stress, and turnover intent. However, employees’ emotional dissonance did not have a significant, direct impact on turnover intent. In addition, employees’ job stress was positively associated with turnover intent.     

Servant leadership,social exchange relationships,and follower's helping behavior: Positive reciprocity belief matters

This study examined how leader-member exchange (LMX) and team-member exchange (TMX) mediate the relationship between servant leadership and helping behavior. The bootstrapping results involving 300 five-star hotel employees and their 80 immediate supervisors revealed that (1) LMX and TMX respectively mediated the relationship between servant leadership and helping behavior, (2) positive reciprocity belief moderated the relationship between servant leadership and LMX, (3) positive reciprocity belief moderated the relationship between servant leadership and TMX. Furthermore, moderated mediation analysis demonstrates that (4) the mediated relationship linking servant leadership with helping behavior via LMX is stronger when positive reciprocity belief is high, and (5) the mediated relationship linking servant leadership with helping behavior via TMX is stronger when positive reciprocity belief is high. We discuss theoretical and practical implications and recommend future research.     

Drivers of hotel employee’s voice behavior: A moderated mediation model

This study developed and tested a moderated mediation model for examining the relationships among person-organization fit (P-O fit), employee voice, employees’ perceived nature of the work and employees’ perceived functional quality of their services. Using 265 frontline employees from several 3 star hotels in Taiwan, the analytical results show that P-O fit is positively related to employee voice, and that employees’ perceived nature of the work mediates the positive relationship between these two variables. The analytical results also show that employees’ perceived functional quality of their services moderates the direct effect of P-O fit on employees’ perceived nature of the work, as well as the indirect effect of P-O fit on employee voice via employees’ perceived nature of the work. Theoretical and practical implications for the hospitality literature and hotel practitioners are discussed herein.     

The mediating role of psychological distress between ostracism,work engagement,and turnover intentions: An analysis in the Cypriot hospitality context

Drawing on the conservation of resources and job-demands resource theories, this study proposes and tests psychological distress as an underlying mechanism mediating the relationships between workplace ostracism, work engagement, and turnover intentions. Furthermore, it investigates how resilience and perceived external employability condition the aforementioned relationships. Four- and five-star full-time hotel employees provided the data for this study. The findings suggest that psychological distress mediated the relationship between workplace ostracism and turnover intention, but did not mediate the workplace ostracism-work engagement linkage. Also, workplace ostracism plummeted the work engagement of less resilient employees, and surprisingly aroused that of more resilient employees. Finally, the result did not support the argument that employees with perceived high external employability would have stronger turnover intentions compared to those with lower external employability. This study offered new insights into the interface between workplace ostracism, engagement, and turnover intention, and relevant theoretical implications and address to managers are further discussed.     

The effects of employees’ business ethical value on person–organization fit and turnover intent in the foodservice industry

Given the growing importance of ethical values and social responsibilities in the workplace, the purpose of this study was to investigate interrelationships among employees’ business ethical value, person–organization fit and turnover intent in the foodservice industry. A total of 788 employees in Korea participated. The results showed a positive relationship between employees’ perceptions of business ethics and their person–organization fit. Participants expressing a high person–organization fit were less likely to leave their positions. These findings have important implications for creating and facilitating an ethical business environment in the foodservice industry. Limitations and future research directions are also discussed.     

The impact of exploitative leadership on frontline hospitality employees’ service performance: A social exchange perspective

Based on social exchange theory, we investigate the impact of perceived exploitative leadership on frontline hospitality employees’ service performance. A three-phase analysis of 207 supervisor–subordinate dyads from three hotels in China demonstrates that exploitative leadership has a negative effect on frontline hospitality employees’ service performance. Furthermore, leader−member exchange (LMX) plays a mediating role in the relationship between exploitative leadership and employee service performance. Moderated path analyses indicate that traditionality weakens the direct influence of exploitative leadership on LMX and an indirect influence of exploitative leadership on employee service performance through reduced LMX. We also discuss the theoretical and practical implications of these findings.     

Leader–Member Exchange (LMX) and Frontline Employees’ Service-Oriented Organizational Citizenship Behavior in the Foodservice Context: Exploring the Moderating Role of Work Status

This study identified the direct and indirect effect of leader–member exchange (LMX) on frontline employees’ service-oriented organizational citizenship behaviors (SOCB) targeting customers and co-workers in the foodservice context. Service-role ambiguity was proposed as a partial mediator in the conceptual model. The moderating effect of work status was also explored in this study. Data were collected from 452 frontline employees, working in 31 different foodservice establishments. All five proposed hypotheses were supported, highlighting the effect of LMX on service role clarity (or ambiguity) and the SOCB. A multiple-group structural equation modeling analysis showed that the effect of LMX on SOCB was higher among part-time employees, compared to full-time employees. One implication of the study findings is that part-time employees should also be treated as a valuable asset to the foodservice organization.     

Explaining the Link Between Emotional Labor and Turnover Intentions: The Role of In-Depth Communication

This study investigates the relationships between three different emotional labor strategies (surface acting, deep acting, and genuine emotions) and turnover intentions and introduces the role of in-depth communication with colleagues as a potential moderator. This study was administered to employees in four Chinese hotel companies. Frontline employees were asked to participate in the survey and 216 valid responses were obtained for data analysis. The results showed that surface acting and deep acting were associated with turnover intentions, and in-depth communication with colleagues moderated the relation between deep acting and turnover intentions. Although there was not a direct effect of genuine emotions on turnover intentions, in-depth communication was a significant moderator of this relation. These findings extend previous literature by demonstrating the role of in-depth communication in shaping employees’ retention.