To speak or not to speak: motivators for internal whistleblowing in hotel industry

Abstract

PurposeUsing self-determination theory as the theoretical framework, the study examines the role of workplace spirituality in motivating internal whistleblowing in an organization and whether it gets enhanced by ethical leadership and moral courage of an employee.Design/methodology/approachThe study was administered to 312 employees belonging to the hotel industry in north India. A three-waves study with a gap of one month each was used for data collection. The study used AMOS and PROCESS Macro to examine the hypothesized relationship.FindingsThe study found a positive association between workplace spirituality and internal whistleblowing, and a parallel mediating impact of employee’s moral courage and ethical leadership on workplace spirituality and internal whistleblowing relationship.Practical implicationsThe work suggests that by recognizing and enforcing the motivating factors that encourage an employee to blow the whistle and reveal illegal, immoral or illegitimate organizational practices, an organization may be able to maintain an ethical stance and create a positive image of itself.Originality/valueThe unique contributions of this study include determining the role of workplace spirituality in supporting internal whistleblowing, especially in the Indian context. Keeping in view the huge losses incurred by hospitality sector during pandemic, internal whistleblowing by employees will create a positive image for the organizations and help in revival.