Resilient or ready to leave? exploring the role of women’s career resilience in their turnover intentions in South African manufacturing organisations

Abstract

Purpose: To provide rich insights into the phenomenon of high turnover rates of women in the South African manufacturing sector by understanding the lived experiences of gendered adversities (job demands) and women’s career resilience (CR) (personal job resource) in the workplace, and by identifying how organisations can better support (organisational job resources) women’s CR to prevent attrition. The research is underpinned by the JD-R model. Design, Methodology, and Approach: An inductive qualitative methodology was used to understand the subjective experiences of gendered adversities and women’s CR, identify the factors that contribute to it, critically evaluate the dynamic between them, and explore the consequences of this dynamic on turnover intentions. Data was collected through 18 semi-structured interviews with women in manufacturing. Findings: The study highlights that CR, supported by organisational resources, helps women navigate job demands, but when job demands outweigh job resources, some women may not stay in their roles. Under these circumstances, women reach a tipping point of whether to stay in or leave the organisation. At the tipping point, push factors, pull factors, and retention anchors shape women’s decisions from turnover intention into attrition.