Investigating the effects of organizational long-term orientation and employees’ pay satisfaction on turnover intentions

Abstract

This research investigates the impact of organizational long-term orientation (LTO) and employees’ pay satisfaction on their intentions to leave their jobs. Drawing from stewardship theory, it proposes that both organizational LTO and pay satisfaction will inversely influence employees’ intentions to quit. Furthermore, these two antecedents are expected to have an interactive influence on turnover intentions. The theoretical model was empirically tested with data collected from an online survey of 335 white-collar employees across various industries in Türkiye. The data were analyzed using moderated multiple regressions. The findings provide empirical support for the hypothesized negative relationships between both organizational LTO and pay satisfaction with employees' intentions to leave their jobs. Furthermore, LTO has a significant moderating effect. When pay satisfaction is low, LTO significantly reduces turnover intentions. No significant effect is found when pay satisfaction is high. Hence, the study shows that pay satisfaction has a key influence on employees’ decisions to remain with the organization, especially in the context of high levels of unemployment and economic uncertainty observed in developing countries like Türkiye. Nevertheless, the study findings also suggest that organizations that have a high level of LTO can buffer at least some of the negative effects of low pay on employee retention.