Turnover in the military : impact of workplace stressors

Abstract

In times of labour shortages, it is essential for organizations to develop an understanding of the reasons employees are leaving if they are to make prudent policy decisions to reduce voluntary turnover. The Canadian military is interested in developing a comprehensive appreciation of why employees are leaving. Voluntary turnover carries with it the loss of experience and expertise, and impact on operations. There were 3 main goals in this study: (1) to assess the relationships of role stressors with job satisfaction and turnover intentions; (2) to examine whether changes in organizational image/values and feelings toward recruiting incentives explain incremental variance in job satisfaction and turnover intentions beyond the traditional role stressors; and (3) to assess the possible moderating effects of several organizational level factors (i.e., organizational commitment, perceived organizational support, and voice) on the relationship of workplace stressors with job satisfaction and turnover intentions. Participants, who completed the Canadian Forces Retention Questionnaire, were 2,748 members of the Canadian Forces (CF) in 14 occupations, specifically targeted due to recent issues related to retention and recruitment. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)