Abstract :
Organizations have underestimated the adverse effects of downsizing and often overlook the challenges of motivating a remaining workforce that is emotionally affected by witnessing others lose their jobs. Yet, motivating these survivors to achieve higher productivity is vital for the company’s success and the job security of employees. It should be noted that, next to the death of a relative or friend, losing a job is one of the most traumatic experiences, as it disrupts careers and families. This research paper aims to study the mediating effect of job security on the relationship between trust in management and organizational commitment of employees. The present research findings suggest that if organizational downsizing is carried out in such a manner that employees perceive positive changes in their daily work experiences in the form of increased organizational support that enhances their trust for management and inculcates perceptions of the accuracy of the performance appraisal system, their affective and continuance commitment to the organization can be maintained or even increased. The study has significance for maintaining member loyalty by organizations which are resorting to downsizing through voluntary retirement schemes as in the Indian context. Research strongly suggests that survivors in the organization also suffer adverse effects after downsizing has occurred.
Keywords :
Downsizing, Organizational Commitment, Voluntary Retirement SchemeReferences :
- Arzuaga, S., Gandolfi, F., Hansson, M. and Johnston, T. (2021) Downsizing and affective organizational commitment: A contextual proximity perspective, Journal of Empirical Economics Letters, Vol. 20, No. 9, pp. X.
- Marchan,(2024) “A bibliometric review of downsizing,” Philippine Academy of Management E-Journal, vol. 7, no. 3, pp. 7-28.
- E. Ferrie, M. J. Shipley, S. A. Stansfeld, and M. G. Marmot (2022). “Effects of chronic job insecurity and change in job security on self-reported health, minor psychiatric morbidity, physiological measures, and health related behaviours in British civil servants: the Whitehall II study,” Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health, vol. 56, no. 6, pp. 450-454.
- P. De Meuse, T. J. Bergmann, P. A. Vanderheiden, and C. E. Roraff (2014), “New evidence regarding organizational downsizing and a firm’s financial performance: A long-term analysis,” Journal of Managerial Issues, pp. 155-177.
- Lee, S. H., & Jeong, D. Y. (2017). “Job insecurity and turnover intention: Organizational
commitment as mediator” Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal, 45(4), 529–536. https://doi.org/10.2224/sbp.5865 - Lv, H., Wang, G., Ghouri, M. W. A., & Deng, Z. (2023). Investigating the Impact of Psychological Contract Violation on Survivors’ Turnover Intention under the Downsizing Context: A Moderated Mediation Mechanism. Sustainability, 15(3), 1770.
- Steel and A. House, “Short-term pain for long-term gain? A longitudinal meta-analysis of downsizing-financial performance relationships,” Frontiers in Behavioral Economics, vol. 3, p. 1237750, 2024. https://doi.org/10.3389/frbhe.2024.1237750
- Moore, L. Grunberg, and E. Greenberg(2014), “Repeated downsizing contact: the effects of similar and dissimilar layoff experiences on work and well-being outcomes,” Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, vol. 9, no. 3, pp. 247-257. https://doi.org/10.1037/1076-8998.9.3.247
- Moore, L. Grunberg, and E. Greenberg (2016), “Surviving repeated waves of organizational downsizing: The recency, duration, and order effects associated with different forms of layoff contact,” Anxiety, Stress, and Coping, vol. 19, no. 3, pp. 309-329. https://doi.org/10.1080/10615800600901341
- W. Lester, J. R. Kickul, T. J. Bergmann, and K. P. De Meuse (2023), “The effects of organizational resizing on the nature of the psychological contract and employee perceptions of contract fulfillment.
- Arzuaga, F. Gandolfi, M. Hansson, and T. Johnston (2021).”Downsizing and affective organisational commitment: A contextual proximity perspective” Empirical Economics Letters, vol. 20, no. 9, pp. 1565-1592. https://doi.org/10.5465/ambpp.2020.17888
- S. Arzuaga and F. Gandolfi (2021). “Theoretical perspectives on downsizing: Long-term effect and impact of repeat downsizing,” Journal of Management Research, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 76-85.

