Industrial relations climate and employee intention to quit: The roles of voice and silence

Abstract

Using social influence theory, we examined a model regarding the mediating effects of voice and silence in the relationship between industrial relations climate and employee intention to quit. Data were collected at 2 time points from 536 frontline employees at firms in an industrial park in China. We tested the hypothesized relationships using multiple mediation structural equation modeling and bootstrapping analysis. The results demonstrate that harmonious industrial relations climate reduced intention to quit by increasing employee voice, and hostile industrial relations climate increased intention to quit by increasing employee silence. Our findings highlight the importance of the roles of employee voice and silence in the relationship between industrial relations climate and employee intention to quit.