The Power of Meaningful Work

Abstract

This paper develops and tests a model of the impact of employees’ awareness of corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives on perceived task significance and important attitudinal and behavioral work outcomes of service employees in the hospitality industry. Data from 211 employees of a United Kingdom–based hotel chain provide support for the concept that employees should be made aware of CSR actions. Results suggest that employees’ awareness of CSR activities is positively related to job satisfaction, engagement in helping and voice behavior, and personal initiative, and CSR awareness is negatively related to emotional exhaustion. These relationships are partly or fully mediated by perceived task significance. We discuss implications of this research for theory and practice, and provide several recommendations for how managers in the hospitality industry can increase employees’ awareness for corporate engagement in CSR initiatives.