Transformational leadership influences on organisational justice and employee commitment in a customer service organisation

Abstract

Orientation: Organisations are facing several challenges pertaining to effective leadership, fairness and loyalty of employees. The moderating influence of transformational leadership (TL) on the relationship between justice and employee commitment is still largely unknown and needs to be explored further, especially within the customer service industry. Research purpose: The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between organisational justice and employee commitment and to examine the moderating effect of TL on the relationship between organisational justice and employee commitment in a customer service organisation. Motivation for the study: The research setting of this study is a customer service organisation. This organisation calls for a role model leadership approach, such as TL, to create a just, fair workplace and ultimately increase the level of employee commitment. Research approach/design and method: A quantitative cross-sectional survey design was used to collect the data from a sample of 111 permanently employed staff in a South African customer service organisation. Main findings: The findings indicate that TL had a significant positive relationship with organisational justice and employee commitment. Furthermore, the results indicate that TL moderated the relationship between organisational justice and employee commitment. Practical/managerial implications: The findings showed that TL could be vital as an effective leadership approach that can enhance justice perceptions and psychological attachment in the workplace. Contribution/value-add: This study contributes to the theoretical debate on TL, workplace fairness and psychological attachment by providing empirical support on the effect of TL on the relationship between justice and commitment perceptions.