The association between job insecurity and engagement of employees at work

Abstract

This study examined the association between employees’ perceived job insecurity and employee engagement. Using Gallup-Sharecare Well-Being Index (2008–2014) data, we applied logistic regressions to examine the association between job insecurity and engagement, controlling for covariates. The job insecurity variable was also interacted with the supervisor support variable. We found that perceived job insecurity was associated with reduced engagement and that this may be moderated by supervisor support. This is the first study using nationally representative data to examine the role of supervisor support in mitigating the negative impact of job insecurity on engagement.

Keywords:

• Job insecurity
• employee engagement
• supervisor support
• Gallup
• downsizing
• workforce reduction

Acknowledgment

We would like to thank Toni Alterman, Sara Luckhaupt, Tsai Rebeca, and Regina Pana-Cryan, Casey Chosewood, all from CDC-NIOSH for their valuable comments and suggestions on the earlier version of the paper.