The Influence of Survivors’ Empowerment on the Commitment and Turnover Intentions Following Downsizing.

The study involved a multivariate correlational design which investigated the influence of employee empowerment on employee commitment and turnover intentions of survivors following downsizing. Data were collected from one hundred and ninety-six (196) participants from a cross-section of organisations that had undergone downsizing within the previous one year in the Accra metropolis using questionnaires. Findings showed that dimensions of employees’ psychological empowerment had significant positive relationship with commitment with competence having the strongest effect. However, all the dimensions of employee empowerment had a significant negative influence on turnover intentions with competence having the strongest effect. These findings are discussed in relation to previous studies within the framework of self determination theory. It is recommended that the planning and implementation of downsizing strategies should focus on enhancing the psychological empowerment and commitment of survivors to prevent employees’ turnover.