The association between subjective job insecurity and job performance across different employment groups

Tinka Van Vuuren,Peter G.W Smulders,Jeroen P De Jong

doi:10.1108/cdi-05-2018-0155

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to test the relationship between subjective job insecurity and self-rated job performance, and to assess how this association is different across different employment groups.Design/methodology/approachThe authors used a data set owned by TNO and Statistics Netherlands of more than 89,000 Dutch workers and self-employed that is a representative sample of the Dutch workforce. The authors included data from 2014 and 2016 assessing subjective job insecurity in terms of “a concern about the future of one’s job/business” and self-rated job performance.FindingsThe effect size of the association between subjective job insecurity and self-rated job performance is small. For temporary agency workers and on-call workers, the association between subjective job insecurity and job performance is weaker compared to permanent workers and fixed-term workers. However for self-employed workers with and without employees, however, the relation between subjective job insecurity and job performance is stronger compared to permanent workers.Research limitations/implicationsThe biggest limitation is the cross-sectional design of the study, which limits conclusions about causality.Practical implicationsThe finding that subjective job insecurity goes together with less work performance shows that job insecurity has no upside for the productivity of companies.Originality/valueThe study provides a deeper understanding of the relationship between subjective job insecurity and self-rated job performance on a national level.

Highlights

Job security is considered as one of the most important parts of the quality of jobs
We find a negative correlation of −0.13 between subjective job insecurity and self-rated job performance
The results show that subjective job insecurity is negatively related with job performance (B 1⁄4 0.11(0.00), p o0.001, β 1⁄4 −0.13), which supports H1

Summary

Introduction

Job security is considered as one of the most important parts of the quality of jobs. Perceiving high levels of subjective job insecurity goes together with declining levels of various outcomes ranging from well-being to job attitudes and behaviour (Shoss, 2017). Most studies show a negative relationship between subjective job insecurity and job performance ( for meta-analyses, see Cheng and Chan, 2008; Gilboa et al, 2008; Jiang and Lavaysse, 2018; Sverke et al, 2002), some found no significant effect Research has identified many moderators and mediators of the job insecurity–employee outcomes relationship One of the moderators hypothesized to have an important impact on how subjective job insecurity associates with job performance, is the type of employment (Lee et al, 2018). Research by De Cuyper, De Witte and their colleagues (De Cuyper and De Witte, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008; De Witte and Näswall 2003) shows that job insecurity has a stronger effect on the life satisfaction, job satisfaction and organizational commitment among permanent workers when compared to temporary workers

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