Workplace Harassment and Employee Outcomes: Exploring the Links to Burnout, Turnover Intention, and Absenteeism

Abstract

This study examines links between workplace harassment and employee outcomes—burnout, turnover intention, and absenteeism—using multiple regression on data from varied industries. Four harassment dimensions were tested: verbal harassment, workload harassment, social exclusion, and threats/intimidation. Harassment significantly predicted all outcomes. Verbal harassment related strongly to burnout (β = .28, p < .001) and turnover intention (β = .22, p < .01). Workload harassment was the most influential across outcomes, especially absenteeism (β = .27, p < .001). Social exclusion predicted burnout (β = .17, p < .01) and turnover intention (β = .21, p < .01), but not absenteeism. Threats/intimidation strongly predicted turnover intention (β = .29, p < .001) and burnout (β = .26, p < .001). Models explained 46% of burnout, 42% of turnover intention, and 31% of absenteeism variance. Findings underscore the need for proactive prevention, supportive reporting mechanisms, and inclusive cultures to reduce distress, turnover, and absence.