Pay fairness and employee outcomes: exacerbation and attenuation effects of financial need

The consequences of pay fairness perceptions are rarely explored, in part because of the lack of a compelling theory which relates pay attitudes directly to distal health and behavioural outcomes. We propose financial need as a potential moderator of the relationship between pay fairness and employees' physical health, psychological health, and work-related behaviours. Differential exacerbating and attenuating effects are predicted for various outcomes. In a longitudinal study of 651 employees of rive American mid-western organizations, exacerbation predictions were strongly supported in cross-sectional analyses for life satisfaction, depression, and somatic complaints. Attenuation predictions received support cross-sectionally and longitudinally for job search intent, but were not supported for performance, absenteeism, or voluntary turnover. The importance of these results for understanding pay dynamics and for outlining mid-range theories is highlighted.