The Effect of Employees’ Perceived Corporate Social Responsibility and Organizational Support on Organizational Commitment: A Study on Leather Sector in Addis Ababa

Abstract

he purpose of this study is to explore the effects of Employees’’ Perceived Corporate Social Responsibility and Organizational Support on Organizational commitment in Leather Sector, one of the leading manufacturing industries for its economic benefits, export earning, employment opportunities and attracting foreign direct investment in Ethiopia. Studies showed that the sector is characterized by relatively low wages, which contributes to high labor turnover rates caused by lack of employees’ commitment. However, it is generally claimed that committed employees will favorably impact on the success of businesses and considered as important asset for the company survival, continuity and advancement of the businesses. Many previous studies in other countries have reported that employee’ perceived corporate social responsibility initiatives and perceived organizational support substantially elevate the types of attachment employees’ have towards their organization. The essence of the research is emanated from the need to fill the research gap in this area in Ethiopia context and to come up with practical recommendations for improving employees’ organizational commitment. In this study, quantitative research approach was employed to explore the relationship between the predictor and the outcome variables. To collect relevant data, the researcher together with Human Resource Manger administered structured questionnaires in hard and soft copy to selected 250 target population using simple random sampling technique. The analysis was performed by descriptive and inferential statistics using SPSS software. The finding showed that employees’ Perceived Corporate Social Responsibility is positively related to the employees’ organizational commitment. Furthermore, the way employees’ perceived their organizational support also has positive association with employees’ organizational commitment. Finally, it was found that the effect of Perceived Corporate Social Responsibility on employees’ organizational commitment was stronger than the perceived organizational support variable in the Leather Sector, Addis Ababa. The findings and recommendations of this study can serve as valuable guide for the management as it provides crucial information regarding the types of activities companies could strengthen and engage in relation to CSR and organizational support initiatives. In due course, such involvement would further improve employees’ organizational commitment.