Employee Perceptions of Organizational Justice Amidst Threats to Civil Service Protections Through the Lens of Turnover Intention

Abstract

Previous studies focusing on civil service reform efforts at the sub-national level have illustrated how such initiatives may adversely affect employee perceptions of organizational conditions. Despite the insights provided by existing literature, little is known as to how federal employees perceive organizational justice amidst uncertain contextual and political conditions, and how the organizational justice perceptions influence their intentions to stay or leave their organizations. Using data from the 2021 Merit Principles Survey, collected amidst deliberations regarding federal civil service reform initiatives, this study examines how federal employee perceptions of organizational justice affect their turnover intentions with different exit strategies against the backdrop of the contextual and political changes. The findings lend support to existing literature highlighting organizational justice as a key factor influencing employee intentions to remain or leave positions of federal employment. The article concludes by discussing the contributions and implications of the present research as well as its limitations.