Justice and employee attitudes during organizational change: The mediating role of overall justice

Marzucco, Laurence [ULg] Marique, Géraldine [UCL] Stinglhamber, Florence [UCL] Hansez, Isabelle [ULg]

Introduction Several studies have investigated the mediating role of overall justice (OJ) in the relationships between specific dimensions of justice and employee attitudes. However, prior research has neglected to examine OJ during the process of organizational change, as suggested in fairness heuristic theory (FHT). Objective This study aims to replicate the results of previous studies and expand them by examining, in two contexts of organizational change implementation, the mediating role of OJ in the relationships between procedural, interpersonal, and informational justice (PJ, ITJ, and IFJ, respectively) and employee attitudes (job satisfaction, turnover intentions, and organizational commitment). Methodology We surveyed 537 employees experiencing a company reorganization (Study 1) and 188 employees experiencing a merger (Study 2). Results Each dimension of justice is related to OJ, which in turn is associated to employee attitudes. Furthermore, bootstrap results indicated that OJ mediates the effects of PJ, ITJ, and IFJ on job satisfaction and turnover intentions (in both studies), and on affective, normative, and continuance commitment (in Study 2). Conclusion Our findings show the importance of fairness during organizational change. Treating employees fairly in times of change is crucial for managers.