Organisational support as a moderator between emotional exhaustion and turnover intentions

Orientation: The study of food industry workers experiencing emotional exhaustion (EE) and their views on organisational support (OS) becomes a crucial concept of turnover research. Research purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore how OS influences EE and turnover intentions (TI) among employees in the food industry. Motivation for the study: High turnover and burnout are common workplace problems that reduce productivity and increase operating costs.Organisational support could help to alleviate EE and reduce the likelihood of employees leaving their jobs. Research design, approach and method: A convenience sample of 385 permanent South African employees from the food sector was included in the study. The measurement instruments used were the Turnover Intention Scale, the Emotional Exhaustion Scale and the Organisational Support Scale. A hierarchical regression analysis was used to determine the effect of OS on EE and turnover. Main findings: The results show that EE is related positively to TI. The findings imply that OS is negatively associated with EE and TI. Furthermore, the findings revealed that OS moderated the relationship between EE and TI among individuals with a high OS. Practical/managerial implications: Organisational support is a resource that could buffer EE levels and reduce TI. Human resource managers could use these results to improve and reduce EE levels. Contribution/value-add: This study shows how OS reduces EE in the food industry, improves employee well-being and increases productivity.