TY - JOUR

T1 - Protecting older workers' employability

T2 - A survey study of the role of transformational leadership

AU - Boettcher, Katrin

AU - Albrecht, Anne-Grit

AU - Venz, Laura

AU - Felfe, Joerg

PY - 2018/5

Y1 - 2018/5

N2 - Demographic and labour market changes increase the need to enhance the employability of employees across all ages. The purpose of this study is to explore the role of transformational leadership in employees’ employability. While we hypothesised that age is negatively related to perceived internal and external employability, we expected a positive relationship for transformational leadership, and that transformational leadership would moderate the relationship between age and employability. Hypotheses were tested using a sample of 1006 employees in the German automotive industry. Results show age to be negatively related to internal and external employability, with both relationships being comparably strong. Transformational leadership was positively related to internal and external employability, with the relationship with internal employability being stronger. Moreover, transformational leadership buffered the negative relationship between age and internal employability. These results suggest that transformational leadership is crucial in protecting lifetime employability and that it should be promoted.

AB - Demographic and labour market changes increase the need to enhance the employability of employees across all ages. The purpose of this study is to explore the role of transformational leadership in employees’ employability. While we hypothesised that age is negatively related to perceived internal and external employability, we expected a positive relationship for transformational leadership, and that transformational leadership would moderate the relationship between age and employability. Hypotheses were tested using a sample of 1006 employees in the German automotive industry. Results show age to be negatively related to internal and external employability, with both relationships being comparably strong. Transformational leadership was positively related to internal and external employability, with the relationship with internal employability being stronger. Moreover, transformational leadership buffered the negative relationship between age and internal employability. These results suggest that transformational leadership is crucial in protecting lifetime employability and that it should be promoted.

KW - Business psychology

KW - Chronological age

KW - internal and external employability

KW - perceived employability

KW - survey study

KW - transformational leadership

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85063473691&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1177/2397002218763001

DO - 10.1177/2397002218763001

M3 - Journal articles

VL - 32

SP - 120

EP - 148

JO - German Journal of Human Resource Management

JF - German Journal of Human Resource Management

SN - 2397-0022

IS - 2

ER -