7 Factors Influencing Employee Turnover Intention in 2022

What is Employee Turnover Intention?

Employee turnover refers to the number of employees that quit their jobs or leave an organization within a specific time. It’s usually calculated in percentage and called ‘employee turnover rate.’

‘Turnover intention’ refers to an employee’s willingness or intention to voluntarily quit their job or leave a company.  While employee turnover refers to the total number of employees leaving an organization, turnover intention tells us how many employees intended to leave. 

Factors Influencing Employee Turnover Intention

A few factors can influence employees to quit their work willingly. When an employee quits, it may be because of one or more factors. Following are a few examples of such factors that can influence employee turnover intention:

1. Job Satisfaction

Perhaps the most significant factor in employee turnover is job satisfaction. Higher job satisfaction affects employees’ productivity, effectiveness, and performance and results in lower turnover and retention. On the contrary, dissatisfaction or lower job satisfaction affects employees’ performances negatively and causes them to leave the job. 

A lot of smaller factors play a role in job satisfaction. The work itself and the responsibilities they’re given are significant factors. The working condition, remuneration, commute problems, etc., also play roles. Other more ‘formal’ causes are administration, policies, poor supervision, etc. 

Other important causes are recognition, advancement, achievement, etc. Many organizations make the mistake of not paying attention to these aspects. But lack of recognition and administrative support, low opportunities for advancement and achievement, etc., demotivates employees. Constant or prolonged demotivation and dissatisfaction towards the job cause employees to quit or leave the company.

2. Colleague Relations

Colleague relations mean the interpersonal work relationships or the relation a person has with their co-workers at the workplace. These relationships translate into cooperation, trust, and so forth. Having good colleague relations help create team bonding and a healthy work environment. There is no unnecessary harmful competition.  

But, the lack of good/healthy colleague relations can create feuds and distressful, unhealthy competition at the workplace. This can make employees feel unwelcome and betrayed. It also affects their performance, efficiency, and productivity negatively. Ultimately, they may end up quitting their jobs.

3. Communication

Communication means sharing non-personal or personal information. Communication can drastically influence any decision-making process. At the professional level, communicating and sharing information results in solving problems the company/organization may be facing. When colleagues or bosses communicate, employees feel respected and acknowledged. 

On the other hand: lack of communication makes the employees feel underappreciated and unnoticed. Employees tend to leave the job if they don’t feel acknowledged, appreciated, or respected enough.

4. Organizational Commitment

Organizational commitment refers to the employee’s psychological attachment towards the organization. Higher organizational commitment indicates an employee’s high willingness to keep working at the workplace. Organizational support boosts employee’s employee morale and employee commitment. It also grants the employees.

There is a significant positive relationship between organizational commitment and job autonomy. The more the employees are committed to the organization, the less likely they are to quit their jobs.

5. Organizational Justice

Organizational justice refers to the fairness of (resource) allocation within the organization. It also refers to the unbiasedness within the organization. This encompasses the actions and decisions made by management, employees’ salary, opportunities for promotion and advancement, performance evaluation, etc. 

Employees expect the company to be just, unbiased, and transparent about these aspects. If everything follows the proper course and the employees are treated fairly, they tend to be motivated and satisfied. Lack of organizational justice can demotivate employees and make them leave the organization.

6. Organizatonal Politics

Organizational politics refer to the work behavior of the employees. This can affect the company both positively and negatively. 

Negative impacts may cause conflicts over resources and other ethical concerns. These politics may cause grouping, disputes, and internal clashes in the company/organization. However, employee turnover can influence organization policies and their images as well.

Ultimately, there is no straightforward answer if organizational policies negatively affect employees’ work ethic. But one thing is for sure, the organizational policy is one of the factors in employee turnover.

7. Organizational Reputation

It is pretty apparent from the title that organizational reputation means the social or socio-economic image of the organization. This represents the value reputation of the company in the country/region. Corporate reputation matters greatly, as employees take pride in working for a company with a good image and standards. Reputation is also associated with trust and reliability- with both employees and clients. 

If the company or organization is reputed and has a trustworthy image, employees are less likely to quit or leave their jobs. Instead, they tend to work harder to add value and prove their worth. And on the other hand, if a company is less reputed, employees may not make that effort. So, employee turnover can be high. This is also true when specific actions affect the company’s image suddenly. Many even make quick decisions based on the change of reputation of the company or organization. 

Bottom Line

Employees are the building blocks of a company or organization. No company can progress without their contribution, hard work, and productivity. So, it is essential to understand employees as best as possible to keep them motivated, inspired, and productive. We hope this article has helped you understand employee turnover and the factors influencing employee turnover intention. 

Frequently Asked Questions

• What are the four types of employee turnover?

The four types of employee turnovers are voluntary, involuntary, retirement, and internal transfer. 

• What is a good employee turnover rate?

Around a 10% employee turnover rate is suitable for an organization. But, most organizations fail, ending with a 12%-20% employee turnover rate.

• How do you calculate employee turnover?

Employee turnover is usually calculated in percentage. You can simply divide the number of employees who leave in a year by the average number of employees of the organization within that period.