Tipping and employee attitudes in the hotel sector: extrinsic reward expectancy perspective

ABSTRACT

Gratuities serve as supplementary source of income for hospitality employees. However, the influence of tips on the job attitudes of hotel workers is not adequately understood. Consequently, this study examines the interplay between tips, organizational commitment, and job satisfaction among hotel employees in Ho, Ghana. A convenience sampling technique was used to select 285 respondents who completed paper-and-pencil questionnaires. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics while the model was tested with Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The results of the study indicate that levels of tips had a significant positive impact on job satisfaction but a negative influence on commitment. Furthermore, reward satisfaction increases the job satisfaction levels of hotel workers. Higher tip earnings will lead to increases in employee job satisfaction while reducingtheir organizational commitment. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• Tipping
• job satisfaction
• commitment
• reward satisfaction
• hotel employees
• Ghana

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).