Organizational Drivers of Turnover Intention in China’s Manufacturing Industry: Evidence of the Mediating Role of Employee Motivation

Abstract

This study investigates the influence of organizational factors—namely organizational commitment, organizational justice, and reward management—on employees’ turnover intention in China’s manufacturing industry, with employee motivation as a mediating variable. A quantitative approach was adopted using a structured survey distributed to 487 full-time employees in medium and large manufacturing firms across several industrial provinces in China. The data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to test the proposed direct and mediating relationships among the variables. The results reveal that all three organizational factors significantly reduce turnover intention both directly and indirectly through employee motivation. Organizational commitment, justice, and reward management positively influence employee motivation, which in turn negatively impacts turnover intention. Furthermore, employee motivation plays a partial mediating role in the relationship between organizational factors and turnover intention. These findings confirm the theoretical assumptions of Self-Determination Theory and Social Exchange Theory within the Chinese manufacturing context. The cross-sectional design limits causal interpretation, and the reliance on self-reported data may introduce common method bias. Future studies are encouraged to use longitudinal designs and multi-source data. The findings provide practical insights for HR managers in manufacturing firms to reduce employee turnover by fostering commitment, fairness, and equitable reward systems that enhance motivation and engagement. This study extends motivational and exchange-based theories by providing empirical evidence of the psychological mechanism through which organizational practices influence turnover intention in an emerging economy context.