Perceived Job Insecurity Research Articles

Employees' job insecurity perception and unsafe behaviours in human–machine collaboration

PurposeThis study aimed to explore the relationship between job insecurity and unsafe behaviour in human–machine collaboration, as well as investigating the mediating roles of emotional exhaustion and moderating roles of psychological detachment.Design/methodology/approachThe authors followed the stressor-detachment model to build our research model. The authors selected manufacturing and service industry employees as samples, and designed three independent studies using the time-lagged method for SPSS and AMOS to test the hypotheses.FindingsThe results indicated that emotional exhaustion mediated the relationship between the two types of job insecurity and unsafe behaviours among service industry employees, while psychological detachment moderated the effect of qualitative job insecurity on emotional exhaustion. In manufacturing, psychological detachment moderated the effect of quantitative job insecurity on emotional exhaustion, while emotional exhaustion mediated the relationship between quantitative job insecurity and unsafe behaviours.Research limitations/implicationsThe authors enhance understandings of how individual employee characteristics and the work environment jointly influence employees' levels of emotional exhaustion and likelihood of engaging in unsafe behaviours under the stressor-detachment model.Practical implicationsThe authors suggest an important role of psychological detachment in human–machine collaboration. The authors also that organisations and managers could encourage employees not to check work-related emails on weekends to achieve full detachment.Originality/valueThis study contributes to both the stressor-detachment model and job insecurity literature. In addition, it investigates the role of detachment and emotional exhaustion by employees in human–machine collaboration.

Association of Perceived Job Insecurity With Subsequent Memory Function and Decline Among Adults 55 Years or Older in England and the US, 2006 to 2016

Intensified global economic competition and recent financial crises, including those associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, have contributed to uncertainty about job security. However, little is known about the association of perceived job insecurity with memory function and decline among older adults. To investigate the association between perceived job insecurity and subsequent memory function and rate of memory decline among older adults in the US and England. This 10-year prospective population-based cohort study used data from the US Health and Retirement Study (HRS) and the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA) collected from 2006 to 2016. Participants included 9538 adults 55 years or older. Data were analyzed from August 1 to 31, 2021. Perceived job insecurity (yes vs no) at baseline. Episodic memory z scores at baseline and rate of decline during the follow-up. Among the 9538 study participants, the mean (SD) age at baseline was 60.97 (6.06) years, and 4981 (52.22%) were women. A total of 2320 participants (24.32%) reported job insecurity at baseline (1088 of 3949 [27.55%] in England and 1232 of 5589 [22.04%] in the US). Perceived job insecurity after 55 years of age was associated with lower baseline memory z scores in the fully adjusted model (β = -0.04 [95% CI, -0.08 to -0.01]) but not with rate of memory decline (β = 0.01 [95% CI, -0.01 to 0.01]). The association appeared to be stronger in the US than in England (job insecurity × US, β = -0.05 [95% CI, -0.11 to 0.02]), but the estimate was imprecise, potentially owing to low statistical power. The findings of this cohort study suggest that exposure to job insecurity in middle to late life was associated with worse memory function among older adults in the US and England. This association may vary across socioeconomic and social welfare contexts, although future studies with large samples from diverse socioeconomic settings are warranted.

Supervisor and customer incivility as moderators of the relationship between job insecurity and work engagement: Evidence from a new context

Earlier studies on job insecurity tested job resources that may buffer the usual negative impact of job insecurity on job outcomes. The current study extends prior results by establishing that, given certain conditions, such as during an economic crisis that often gives rise to a dearth of employment opportunities and a precariousness of employment, perceived job insecurity could positively predict work engagement. Specifically, this study examined the relationship between perceived job insecurity and work engagement, and supervisor and customer incivility as moderators of this relationship. Cross-sectional data were collected from 1,200 volunteer mini-bus drivers from nine mass transit services companies in the Southeastern region of Nigeria. Results of a structural equation model (SEM) showed that job insecurity was positively related to work engagement. In turn, this positive relationship was weakened by supervisor incivility (but not by customer incivility). The results suggest that when supervisors are not supervised they could jeopardize employee effort.

Does fear of COVID-19 undermine career optimism? A time-lagged quantitative inquiry of non-managerial employees

PurposeThis study intends to examine the impact of a fear of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on workers' career optimism via perceived job insecurity among non-managerial working restaurant employees.Design/methodology/approachTime-lagged quantitative data were collected in two waves from 316 non-managerial on-job restaurant employees. Structural equation modeling technique was applied to examine the measurement and structural model.FindingsThe study showed that workers' fear of COVID-19 positively impacts their job insecurity. Further, the study found that increasing level of job insecurity depletes workers' career optimism—an outlook of their future career prospects.Research limitations/implicationsThe study suggests organizations should work to make employees feel secure in terms of their job continuity and career progression. Eventually, this would support employees in shielding themselves against possible resource loss (e.g. career optimism) due to pandemic crises.Originality/valueExtant literature has tested the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on employees' workplace attitudes and behaviors such as job satisfaction (e.g. Bajrami et al., 2021) and safety performance (e.g. Kim et al., 2021). However, little has been researched on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on employees' future career outlook, particularly of non-essential workers in the hospitality industry. To the best of the author's knowledge, an explicit examination of the impact of COVID-19 fear on career optimism has not been conducted previously. Hence, this study will not only be a valuable contribution in the literature of career management, but will also yield important practical implications.

Impact of COVID-19 and Consortium Factors on Mental Health: Role of Emotional Labor Strategies in Achieving Sustainable Development Goals.

The COVID-19 pandemic that began in 2019 has created an acute fear of economic crisis, and people have experienced the state of perceived job insecurity. Several measures were taken to control this deadly pandemic, but it still affected the majority of global operational activities. This study addresses the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) number 8 that relates to decent work and economic growth. This quantitative study examines the impact of fear associated with economic crisis and perceived job insecurity on mental health with the moderating effect of surface and deep acting. Surface acting is displaying fake emotions, and deep acting is modifying inner feelings according to the required emotions. This study used sample data from private-sector employees and applied SmartPLS for structural model assessment. As many organizations took more challenging decisions to sustain their business operations, the study therefore analyzes the impact of the pandemic on private sector employees. The two main findings of the study are: (i) surface acting moderates the relationships of fear of economic crisis and perceived job insecurity with mental health and declines the impact of both on mental health, (ii) while deep acting negatively moderates the relationships of fear of economic crisis and perceived job insecurity with mental health and improved mental health even in the presence of both. The study highlighted the importance of deep acting at workplaces to sustain employees’ mental and psychological stability. Organizations could introduce emotional labor strategies and strengthen the mental health of their employees against the underlying fear of economic crisis and perceived job insecurity.

Perceived job insecurity and risk of suicide and suicide attempts: a study of men and women in the Swedish working population.

ObjectiveWhether perceived job insecurity increases the risk of suicidal behaviors is unclear. Improved understanding in this area could inform efforts to reduce suicide risk among those experiencing elevated job insecurity during the COVID-19 pandemic as well as post-pandemic. We aimed to investigate if perceived job insecurity predicted increased risk of suicide mortality and suicide attempts.MethodEmployees (N=65 571), representative of the Swedish working population who participated in the Swedish Work Environment Survey in 1991–2003, were followed up through 2016 in the National Inpatient and Death Registers. Suicide deaths and suicide attempts were defined according to International Classification of Diseases (ICD) 10 and ICD-8/9 codes of underlying cause of death and in-/outpatient care. Job insecurity and subsequent risk of suicide and suicide attempt were investigated with marginal structural Cox regression analyses and inverse probability of treatment weighting to control for confounding.ResultsPerceived job insecurity was associated with an elevated risk of suicide [hazard ratio (HR) 1.51, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.03–2.20], but not with incident suicide attempts (HR 1.03, CI 0.86–1.24). Estimates remained similar after considering prevalent/previous poor mental health, other work factors, and when restricting the follow up time to ten years.ConclusionThe study suggests that job insecurity is associated with an increased risk of suicide mortality. Concerns about elevated job insecurity and suicide levels in the wake of the current pandemic could thus be considered in strategies to reduce the population health impact job insecurity both during and following the COVID-19 pandemic.

The job insecurity of others: On the role of perceived national job insecurity during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Political scientists and sociologists have highlighted insecure work as a societal ill underlying individuals' lack of social solidarity (i.e., concern about the welfare of disadvantaged others) and political disruption. In order to provide the psychological underpinnings connecting perceptions of job insecurity with societally-relevant attitudes and behaviors, in this article the authors introduce the idea of perceived national job insecurity. Perceived national job insecurity reflects a person's perception that job insecurity is more or less prevalent in their society (i.e., country). Across three countries (US, UK, Belgium), the study finds that higher perceptions of the prevalence of job insecurity in one's country is associated with greater perceptions of government psychological contract breach and poorer perceptions of the government's handling of the COVID-19 crisis, but at the same time is associated with greater social solidarity and compliance with COVID-19 social regulations. These findings are independent of individuals' perceptions of threats to their own jobs.

Impact of Job Insecurity on Work–Life Balance during COVID-19 in India

The ongoing health crisis has impacted businesses worldwide, drastically reducing production, consumption and distribution of goods and services, leading to an economic downturn. An increasing unemployment rate has led to a surge in the sense of job insecurity among employees. Lack of job security has a direct impact on an employee’s health and work–life balance. This article focusses on the relationship between and impact of job insecurity on work–life balance, that is, to understand the impact of perceived job insecurity on working hours, employee’s health and reduced family time. Using a self-completed questionnaire, data was collected from 413 employees from different sectors like construction, banks, hospitals, hotels, schools, FMCG, telecommunication, etc., in India, which assisted in testing five hypotheses. The study found a positive relationship between job insecurity and health issues and work–life conflict. Additionally, job insecurity was negatively linked with job performance. Regression analysis showed mediating effects of work demand, work time, family time and family demand on the relationship of job insecurity with health issues, job performance and work–life conflict. However, the article also discusses various effective mechanisms to reduce job insecurity and ways to curb its negative impacts on various organizational and personal outcomes.

Interplay between Perceived Job Insecurity and Organizational Citizenship Behavior: A Moderated Mediation Model

Drawing on uncertainty management theory and social exchange theory, this research examined the interaction effect of organizational justice with perceived job insecurity in organizational citizenship behaviour. A hypothesised model was developed and tested using PLS-SEM (v 3.2.7) on a sample of 210 employees in the banking sector in Pakistan. The study found that at a high level of organizational justice, perceived job insecurity has a weak negative relationship with organizational citizenship behaviour, while at a low level of organizational justice; perceived job insecurity has a strong negative correlation with organizational citizenship behaviour. Results also support the interaction effect of perceived job insecurity and organizational justice on affective organizational commitment and psychological distress. This research highlights the significance of contextual variables which may help the practical community in managing their intellectual capital through casting an appropriate concern in organizational justice.

Dualized Labor Market and Polarized Health: A Longitudinal Perspective on the Association between Precarious Employment and Mental and Physical Health in Germany.

This study analyzes the longitudinal association between precarious employment and physical and mental health in a dualized labor market by disaggregating between-employee and within-employee effects and considering mobility in precariousness of employment. Analyses were based on the German Socio-Economic Panel from 2002 to 2018 considering all employees ages 18 to 67 years (n = 38,551). Precariousness of employment was measured as an additive index considering working poverty, nonstandard working time arrangements, perceived job insecurity, and low social rights. Health outcomes were mental and physical health. Random effects models were used and controlled for sociodemographic and socioeconomic variables. Results indicated that the association between precariousness of employment and mental and physical health is mainly based on between-employee differences and that prolonged precariousness of employment or upward or downward mobility are associated with poor health. We found evidence of polarization in health by precariousness of employment within a dualized labor market.

Job Insecurity and Turnover Intentions among Banking Sector Employees: The Moderating Role of Organizational Support and Ethical Leadership

Purpose - Job insecurity exerts a significant impact on turnover intentions among employees. The association may be partly due to the influence of organizational support and the ethicality of leaders. However, there is a shortage of studies on the ameliorating role of organizational support and ethical leadership in the nexus between job insecurity and turnover intentions. Thus, the purpose of this study is to examine the nexus between job insecurity and turnover intentions among banking sector employees. The moderating role of organizational support and ethical leadership on the underlying relationship was assessed to achieve this. Design/methodology/approach – One hundred and sixty (160) banking sector employees were conveniently selected to participate in the study. The sample consisted of female (n = 92) and male (n = 68) employees, ranging from 23 to 49 years. Standardized measures were used in soliciting respondents' demographic characteristics, perceived job insecurity, ethical leadership, organizational support, and turnover intentions. Data were analyzed using regression analysis. Findings – Results revealed a significant positive correlation between perceived job insecurity and turnover intentions. Organizational support and ethical leadership also moderated the association between job insecurity and turnover intentions. The influence of job insecurity on turnover intentions minimizes when management provides the needed support and favorable climatic conditions. Originality/value – In general, the study highlights the importance of organizational support and ethical leadership in lessening the impact of job insecurity on turnover intentions.

The Precarization of Educational Labor: The Examination of Teachers’ Job Insecurity Perceptions

The Precarization of Educational Labor: The Examination of Teachers’ Job Insecurity Perceptions

CONSEQUENCES OF ORGANIZATIONAL OUTCOMES OF JOB INSECURITY IN ORGANIZATIONS

Job insecurity is the prevailing phenomenon in today’s organizations. This cross-sectional study is examined from the private sector organizations of Pakistan where the vital existence perceived job insecurity has been observed. Information collection was conducted within the spring of 2020 as part of a program of study for part-time MBA from Riphah International University. (N=202) were guaranteed of secrecy, seem skip study things or segments in case awkward, and gotten course credit for taking an interest.

The fear of being infected and fired: Examining the dual job stressors of hospitality employees during COVID-19.

As the COVID-19 pandemic has posed grave threats to the financial and physical health of hospitality employees, this research unveils details of the dilemma experienced by hospitality employees during the pandemic, namely, their fear of becoming infected and fired. The research data were derived from a sample of 622 hospitality employees in the U.S. and analyzed using PLS-SEM as a new model of COVID-19 stressors are proposed and tested. The findings show that hospitality employees perceive the pandemic as a traumatic event that elevates their perceived job insecurity and infectious risk. It was also found that both job insecurity and infectious risk lead to increased job stress and turnover intentions, while job insecurity alone is a stronger predictor of turnover intentions. This study is among the first to examine the antecedents and consequences of the dual stressors encountered by public-facing occupations, including hospitality, during the pandemic.

Analysis of the 2012 Canadian Community Health Survey-Mental Health demonstrates employment insecurity to be associated with mental illness.

A growing number of people depend on flexible employment, characterized by outsider employment and lower levels of job security. This study investigated whether there was a synergistic effect of employment status and job insecurity on mental disorders.This study used data from the 2012 Canadian Community Health Survey-Mental Health (CCHS) of 13,722 Canada's labor force population aged 20 to 70. Data were collected from January to December, 2012, using computer-assisted personal interviewing. As combining employment status with perceived job insecurity, we formed five job categories: secure full-time, full-time insecure, part-time secure, part-time insecure employment, and unemployment.Results showed that, regardless of employment status (full-time vs part-time), insecure employment was significantly associated with high risk of mental disorders. Furthermore, the odds ratios for insecure employment were similar to those for unemployment. Male workers who are full-time, but with insecure jobs, were more likely to experience mental disorders than female workers.This study's findings imply that while perceived job insecurity may be a critical factor for developing mental health problems among workers, providing effective health care services can mitigate an excessive health risk for the most vulnerable employment, especially for insecure part-time employment and unemployment.

THE IMPACT OF THE PANDEMIC COVID-19 ON HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY AND TOURISM WORKERS

The contemporary Coronavirus pandemic (Covid-19) has led the world to a severe socio-economic crisis and psychological distress. It has distressed the economy, but the services sector, especially the hospitality industry, is seriously affected by it. This study investigates how this virus influences organizational confidence, job satisfaction, and increases employees' sense of insecurity and perceptions of being unemployed. We performed a comparative analysis of the main indicators in tourism in 2020 compared to the same period of 2019, referring to the data recorded internationally. Also, the research aimed to identify how much the hospitality sector is affected by the crisis produced by the Covid-19 pandemic. The results specify that perceived job insecurity interposes the fear of the economic crisis.

Digitalisation and Employees’ Subjective Job Quality in the Second Half of Working Life in Germany

Since digitalisation alters occupational task profiles via automation processes, job quality is also likely to be affected. While existing literature mainly focusses on objective job quality, this study asks if and how digitalisation is associated with employees’ subjective job quality in the second half of working life in Germany. Analyses are based on the German Ageing Survey 2014. Our sample includes n = 1541 employees aged 40–65 years who are subject to social insurance contributions. Subjective job quality is operationalised with regards to job satisfaction and perceived occupational stress in general, and ten aspects of job quality in detail. Digitalisation is approximated by substitution potentials of occupations. We control the association for compositional effects in the workforce, as well as for the moderating effect of perceived job insecurity. The results indicate that digitalisation is predominantly beneficial but also unfavourable in a few other respects for employees’ subjective job quality. The higher the degree of digitalisation, the higher is the employee’s general job satisfaction on average; for general perceived occupational stress, we find no significant association. Regarding single aspects of subjective job quality, employees working in more digitalised occupations are found to report on average higher satisfaction with working hours and earnings, and lower levels of stress due to tight schedules. However, they also report higher levels of stress due to negative environmental factors.

How managerial communication reduces perceived job insecurity of flight attendants during the COVID-19 pandemic

PurposeThis research investigates whether and how the quality of vertical communication implemented by airline industry management can reduce perceived job insecurity of flight attendants during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.Design/methodology/approachThe sample of this research covers 322 flight attendants from five domestic airlines based in Thailand. An online questionnaire survey was used for data collection, and a partial least squares structural equation model was used for data analysis.FindingsThe results support the negative association between the quality of vertical communication and perceived job insecurity; moreover, this association is partially mediated by perceived role ambiguity. When considering the moderating effect of perceived organizational support on the direct linkage between the quality of vertical communication and perceived job insecurity, the quality of vertical communication only has a negative association with perceived job insecurity among employees who exhibit high levels of perceived organizational support. For those who exhibit low levels of perceived organizational support, the quality of vertical communication does not have a negative association with perceived job insecurity.Originality/valueThis study advances prior communication research by showing that in order for communication to effectively lessen the perceived job insecurity of employees, it needs to be backed by high-quality organizational support.

The COVID-19 pandemic: Workplace safety management practices, job insecurity, and employees’ organizational citizenship behavior

How do organizations and employees react to the COVID-19 pandemic? Can workplace safety management practices (WSPs) maintain employees’ organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) in this time of global health crisis? Can employees’ perceptions of the risk associated with COVID-19 and job insecurity mediate the WSPs–OCB relationship? Drawing upon social exchange and protection motivation theories, this research aims to answer such questions. Analyzing the survey data from 501 Vietnamese employees using SmartPLS software, we find that WSPs positively influence the OCB and negatively influence the perceived job insecurity. Furthermore, the perceived risk associated with COVID-19 positively affects perceived job insecurity and OCB. Unexpectedly, in the context of Vietnam, a developing country with a collectivist culture, WSPs increase the employees’ perceived risk associated with COVID-19 instead of reducing their fear. Also, employees’ perceptions of job insecurity are not statistically correlated with OCB. In addition, we reveal a partial mediating role of the perceived risk associated with COVID-19 in the WSPs–OCB relationship. This research highlights the power of WSPs as well as measures to psychologically reassure employees during the pandemics.

The Moderator Role of Financial Well-Being on the Effect of Job Insecurity and the COVID-19 Anxiety on Burnout: A Research on Hotel-Sector Employees in Crisis

During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, which is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), hotel-sector employees attempted to cope with the fear of becoming infected; however, they were also faced with job insecurity. Both the anxiety over COVID-19 and the risk of job insecurity have affected the employees’ economic and social conditions as well as their mental state. The present study examined the effect of COVID-19 anxiety and job insecurity perceptions on the burnout levels of hotel-sector employees and the moderator role of the employees’ financial well-being on this relationship. The study was conducted by collecting data from 396 participants who worked in 17 different five-star hotels in Antalya, Turkey. Because of social isolation and social distancing rules, our research data were obtained using an online questionnaire to avoid close contact with other people. The findings showed that COVID-19 anxiety and perceptions of job insecurity had negative effects on hotel employees in the form of mental burnout. In addition, we determined that as an individual characteristic, financial well-being was a moderator variable that affected the severity of burnout based on COVID-19 anxiety and job insecurity. The research findings exhibited theoretical and practical contributions for decision makers and researchers.