Managing diverse workforce: How to safeguard skilled migrants’ self-efficacy and commitment

Abstract

This study aims to uncover the organizational and contextual factors undermining skilled migrants’ professional development and their contributions to host economies. Drawing from the Conservation of Resources Theory, this research developed an integrated model to investigate the effects of most prevalent internal and external factors of burnout and limited career alternatives on skilled migrants’ organizational commitment. The model incorporates mediating roles of professional self-efficacy and career turnover intention to demonstrate how depletion of resources through burnout leads to further resource losses by negatively impacting employees' intentions about their career continuity and professional self-efficacy and, ultimately, undermines their organizational commitment. This research provides managers of cross-cultural workplaces with insights into the critical role of supportive resources in leveraging the untapped intellectual capital brought to host organizations by skilled migrants. This study suggests that the availability of career options can maximize skilled migrants’ contributions to organizations.

Keywords

Burnout career alternatives career turnover intention professional self-efficacy skilled migrants

Introduction

Immigration of skilled migrants is considered a critical source of intellectual and human capital contributing significantly to host economies’ growth prospects (Afshari and Hadian Nasab, 2021). This contribution, however, can be undermined by the adverse work conditions that skilled migrants experience in workplaces (Jentjens, 2021). Despite the highlighted importance of immigration and cross-cultural workforce to the growth of the economy in Australia, little attention has been paid so far to uncovering the organizational and contextual factors undermining skilled migrants’ professional development and their contributions to the organizational outcomes. Previous research shows that migrant workers are more likely to be exposed to adverse experiences such as job insecurity, unfair treatment, and increased job demands, and as a result, they are prone to burnout in workplaces (Bye et al., 2014; Duan et al., 2020; Keshet and Popper-Giveon, 2016; Vîrgă and Iliescu, 2017; Wassermann and Hoppe, 2019). In addition, studies in the field of cross-cultural management have highlighted the prevalence of adverse work conditions particular to migrant workers (Taylor et al., 2021). For example, previous research shows that migrant workers, particularly skilled migrants, tend to be exposed to a higher risk of overqualification that undermines their psychological well-being (Sirkeci et al., 2018). Adverse work conditions such as overqualification impede immigrants’ integration into their workplaces and deplete their personal resources leading to burnout (Holgate, 2005; Hou et al., 2021; Leschke and Weiss, 2020; Wassermann and Hoppe, 2019). While burnout and its impact on employee and organizational outcomes have received considerable research attention in management, a very limited number of studies in this field have focused on migrant workers. Those focused on migrants, however, suggest that burnout is prevalent among migrant employees (Duan et al., 2020; Wassermann and Hoppe, 2019). To bridge this research gap, the present study investigates the impact of burnout on organizational commitment among skilled migrants.

Employee burnout is an adverse condition that is detrimental to both employee and organizational outcomes. Employees experiencing burnout tend to feel emotionally exhausted, and they develop feelings of inadequacy and cynicism toward work (Maslach et al., 2001). Burnout is more likely to adversely impact those organizational outcomes that are closely associated with employees’ feelings and affection toward the organization, such as organizational commitment. According to Meyer et al. (1989), the type of commitment employees develop toward the organization varies based on the mindset underlying their attachment to the organization. While affective commitment refers to employees’ emotional bond with the organization, continuance commitment is at the other end of the spectrum in terms of employees’ emotional attachment to the organization, and it refers to emotional detachment. Previous research shows that the quality of employee exchange with the organization is diminished when their level of continuance commitment to the organization increases (Afshari, 2021b; Meyer et al., 2002). Although some studies have examined the impact of burnout on organizational commitment, those studies however, have primarily focused on affective commitment neglecting the impact of burnout on continuance commitment. On the other hand, few studies that have investigated migrants’ commitment to their organizations failed to identify the antecedents (Glazer and De La Rosa, 2008). Therefore, the present research extends the scope of the study to account for the effects of burnout on two types of commitment at two extreme ends of the spectrum in terms of skilled migrants’ emotional attachment to organizations.

Furthermore, although previous literature established a strong association between employee burnout and commitment, little is known about the mechanisms through which that association is shaped, especially within the migrant workers context (Sharma and Dhar, 2016). According to the Conservation Of Resources theory (COR) (Hobfoll, 1989), emotional exhaustion reduces employees’ resources and, in turn, negatively impacts their willing commitment to the organization (Hayat and Afshari, 2020). In other words, emotional resource losses through burnout diminish the quality of employee commitment to the organization by shifting their commitment from an organizationally desired form of commitment (affective) to continuance commitment that is the least desirable form of commitment (Afshari, 2021a; Afshari et al., 2020; Meyer et al., 2002). In addition, previous research demonstrated that a chain of resource losses through burnout could negatively impact a range of employee outcomes, such as career turnover intention (Barthauer et al., 2020) and professional self-efficacy (Shoji et al., 2016). Depletion of emotional resources through burnout can adversely impact employees’ intention about their career continuity and, ultimately, their commitment to the organization (Yousaf et al., 2015). Burnout has been found to be negatively associated with performance, and as a result, can be detrimental to employees’ professional self-efficacy leading to their lack of ability to maintain their affective commitment to the organization. This study, therefore, aims to illuminate the mechanisms through which burnout impacts organizational commitment by examining the mediating effects of career turnover intention and professional self-efficacy.

Finally, despite the distinctive impact of contextual factors on skilled migrants and their work conditions, human resource management studies have neglected to account for the effects of those factors in shaping skilled migrants’ commitment toward their workplace. Contextual factors such as limited career options have been found to be prevalent among skilled migrants contributing significantly to their adverse work conditions (Aten et al., 2016; Fu, 2011). To respond to this research gap, the present study integrates the contextual factor of limited career alternatives into its conceptual model and explores how that influences skilled migrants’ commitment.

Burnout and organizational commitment

Previous research has established clear links between burnout and adverse organizational factors postulating burnout as a consequence of adverse work conditions such as job insecurity, unfair treatment, and increased job demands (Duan et al., 2020; Keshet and Popper-Giveon, 2016; Vîrgă and Iliescu, 2017; Wassermann and Hoppe, 2019). Studies examining the work conditions of migrant workers, on the other hand, found that migrant workers are more likely to experience adverse work conditions and, as a result, are more likely to be exposed to workplace burnout (Duan et al., 2020; Keshet and Popper-Giveon, 2016; Vîrgă and Iliescu, 2017; Wassermann and Hoppe, 2019).

Burnout has been referred to as work-related syndromes that employees with prolonged exposure to work stressors experience (Schaufeli and Bakker, 2004). According to Maslach et al. (2001), the psychological syndrome of burnout involves emotional exhaustion, cynicism, and feeling of inadequacy. The emotional exhaustion dimension refers to the depletion of employees’ emotional resources. Cynicism derives from employees’ interpersonal distances with work and leads to employees’ emotional detachment from work. Feelings of inadequacy lower employees’ self-worth and self-regard, negatively impacting their performance.

Organizational commitment has been referred to as a bond that attaches an employee to the organization (Afshari et al., 2020). According to Meyer et al. (1993), the nature of that bond is shaped by the mindset underlying the attachment. For instance, affective commitment is driven by employees' emotional attachment to the organization and is reflected in employees' devotion and loyalty to the organization. Employees who are affectively committed to the organization tend to go beyond their usual duties and contribute further to organizational goals. Another form of organizational commitment that is influenced by employees’ emotions toward organizations is continuance commitment. Similar to affective commitment, continuance commitment is strongly associated with employees’ emotions; however, it is at the other end of the spectrum in terms of employees’ emotional attachment to the organization. Unlike affective commitment, this form of commitment is driven by a lack of emotional connection, and it refers to employees’ emotional detachment to the organization (Meyer et al., 2002). In other words, employees whose emotional attachment to the organization is undermined and their loyalty to the organization is based on lack of alternatives develop a strong continuance commitment to the organization. Previous research shows that the quality of employee exchange with the organization is diminished with their level of continuance commitment to the organization. Employees who decide to stay with the organization due to a lack of options tend to avoid further contribution to the organizational goals. Continuance commitment has been found to negatively impact organizational and employee outcomes such as employee well-being and citizenship behaviour.

The Conservation of Resources (COR) theory (Hobfoll, 1989) was emerged from stress and motivational theories and explains human behaviours in response to the evolutionary need to obtain, maintain, and protect key resources for survival. Key resources are defined as things that are considered valuable and important by individuals. According to the COR theory, stress occurs when those resources are lost, threatened with loss, or a significant effort to gain them fails (Hobfoll, 2011). The COR theory has been utilized in different fields to explain human behaviours, and it has been more explicitly useful to elucidate employee reactions to resource demanding situations such as burnout in organizational contexts. Acquiring and maintaining valuable personal, social, and material resources within organizations help employees build capacity and enhance their performance and, ultimately, organizational performance. Resource demanding situations such as burnout, on the other hand, lead to resource depletion and stress, compromising employee well-being (Afshari et al., 2022). Despite the prevalence of shortage of resources in the migrant workers context, the application of the COR theory in this context has been limited. Workplace issues that are resource demanding for employees, such as job insecurity and unfair treatment, are more likely to occur to migrant workers (Duan et al., 2020; Keshet and Popper-Giveon, 2016; Vîrgă and Iliescu, 2017; Wassermann and Hoppe, 2019). In addition, migrant workers are less likely to be able to obtain external social resources in order to cope with these issues due to their limited social network in the host society. The prevalence of resource demanding issues combined with shortage of resources, therefore, creates a chain of resource losses within the migrant workers context, leading to their burnout (Barthauer et al., 2020).

Drawing from the COR theory (Hobfoll, 1989), it is evident that burned-out skilled migrants whose emotional resources are exhausted are less likely to develop affective organizational commitment due to lack of resources (Liu et al., 2019). According to COR theory, individuals tend to obtain, preserve, and protect their resources. Thus, migrant workers who experience loss of their valuable resources due to burnout tend to compensate for the lost resources by withdrawing from extra-role activities (Goštautaitė et al., 2020). In other words, lack of resources prevents the burned-out employees from involvement in resource devouring extra-role activities and, in turn, lowers their level of affective commitment to the organization. Skilled migrants with depleted energy sources are more likely to develop continuance commitment to the organization rather than affective commitment, where the devotion of resources is required for the expression of commitment (Yetgin and Benligiray, 2019).

H1a: Burnout is negatively related to affective commitment.

H1b: Burnout is positively related to continuous commitment.

Mediation roles of career turnover intention and self-efficacy

Previous studies applying the COR theory in organizational settings have noted that resource loss is likely to lead to further resource loss creating chains of resource losses within organizations (Hobfoll, 2011; Hobfoll et al., 2017). Given the shortage of resources within the migrant workers context, migrants who have exhausted their resources in response to excessive work stressors and have a limited supply of resources including social network support are obliged to consume their existing resources and are more likely to experience burnout. Barthauera et al. (2020), in particular, illustrated how the loss of resources through employee burnout leads to a chain of resource losses within organizations. To fully explore how the chain of resource losses leads to diminished organizational commitment, we have employed the two concepts that are more likely to be adversely impacted by burnout. Burned-out employees with limited resources are less inclined to fully engage in their work; thus, their professional performance is likely to be negatively impacted. Poor performance, in turn, is detrimental to employees’ perception of their ability lowering their professional self-efficacy and negatively impacting their intentions about their career continuity.

Career turnover intention refers to “an individual’s behavioral attitude and perceived probability of staying in or leaving a profession or a chosen career track” (Barthauera et al., 2020: 3) and is considered a threat to career continuity. Career turnover intention can adversely impact a range of organizational outcomes, including commitment, before ultimately resulting in an actual turnover.

Literature on human resource management suggests that various factors, including environmental and work-related conditions, can influence employees’ decisions about their career continuity. Among work-related factors, burnout appeared to have a strong association with career turnover intention (Van Der Heijden, 2019). Drawing from COR theory, Barthauera et al. (2020) referred to career turnover intention as a coping strategy undertaken by burned-out employees in response to resource losses. Employees who experience resource depletion due to burnout tend to eliminate any additional causes of resource losses, such as factors relevant to career situations. Career-relevant stressors can be perceived as sources of burnout by employees, compelling them to revisit their career choice in order to prevent further resource depletion (Singh et al., 2018). Thus, burned-out migrant workers are more likely to develop career turnover intention. Career turnover intention is accompanied by withdrawal cognitions where employees avoid involvement in any resource-demanding task such as extra-role activities lowering their affective commitment to the organizations (Yousaf et al., 2018).

H2: Career Turnover Intention mediates the relationship between burnout and affective commitment.

Self-efficacy reflects an individual’s belief in their capabilities to successfully complete their assigned tasks and attain the expected outcomes. Professional self-efficacy is characterized by employees’ proactive responses to the challenges relevant to their profession (Bandura, 1997; Cherniss, 1991). Employees with a high level of professional self-efficacy believe that they possess the resources required to perform their professional tasks and obtain their professional goals. Therefore, adverse experiences that are prone to resource loss, such as burnout, can undermine their level of self-efficacy (Lee and Akhtar, 2007). Employees whose resources are depleted due to burnout may perceive the attainment of their professional goals beyond their capacity due to the lack of sufficient resources.

Self-efficacy as a reflection of one’s perception and beliefs about their capacity can play a determining role in deriving human behaviour (Bandura, 1997; Cherniss, 1991). In other words, what we do is a reflection of what we think and feel. According to expectancy theory (Lawler and Suttle, 1973; Vroom, 1964), individuals tend to be engaged in tasks if they feel they are capable of delivering the expected outcomes (Assarroudi et al., 2017). On the other hand, they avoid involvement in tasks that go beyond their regular duties and are resource demanding as required for affective commitment.

Skilled migrants whose professional self-efficacy is undermined because of prolonged exposure to job stressors are more likely to emotionally detach from the organization. Exposure to burnout can negatively influence their professional self-efficacy, and in turn, results in a high level of continuance commitment to the organization where employees minimize their contributions to the organization.

H3a: Professional self-efficacy mediates the relationship between burnout and affective commitment.

H3b: Professional self-efficacy mediates the relationship between burnout and continuous commitment.

Self-efficacy refers to an individual’s beliefs in their capacities to produce desired outcomes. It reflects their perception about the level of power and control they have in driving the outcomes (Bandura, 1997). Employees with high professional self-efficacy display a sense of power and autonomy in working toward their professional goals and developing positive feelings about their professional achievements (Valchx et al., 2019). Such positive feelings towards one’s profession can be reversed when one is exposed to psychological exhaustion due to work burnout (Lee and Akhtar, 2007). Skilled migrants experiencing resource depletion due to burnout at work are unable to fully accomplish their professional goals and perceive loss of control over their professional achievements. Exposure to burnout at work diminishes employees’ professional self-efficacy, negatively impacting their beliefs about their professional capabilities. Those migrant workers who experience a lack of control over their professional achievements due to resource losses and burnout tend to associate those resource losses and lack of control with their profession and career. Therefore, they may consider leaving their career in order to regain their control and capabilities.

H4: professional self-efficacy mediates the relationship between burnout and career turnover intention.

Previous research findings suggest that contextual and external factors such as discrimination, legal barriers to employment, and limited career alternatives can impact the level and type of employee commitment to the organization (Fernando and Cohen, 2015). Among those external factors, limited career alternatives can significantly differ for skilled migrants. Previous research has referred to the limited career options as one of the major challenges faced by migrants (Aten et al., 2016). Research shows that lack or limited career options for migrant workers and, more specifically, skilled migrants leads to adverse work conditions such as overqualification (Leschke and Weiss, 2020). Migrant employees with limited career options to choose from tend to undertake roles where they experience little sense of fulfilment and identification with the profession (Wassermann et al., 2017). Employees’ sense of belonging with an organization where they are unable to identify with their profession weakens, ultimately leading to their emotional detachment from the organization. According to Meyer et al. (2002), employees whose loyalty to the organization is based on lack of alternatives are more likely to develop continuance commitment with the organization. It is therefore proposed that:

H5: Limited career alternatives significantly increases continuance commitment.

Figure 1 illustrates the conceptual model of the research.

Figure 1.

Conceptual model.

Method

Participants were selected from professional migrants working in Australia in 2019. Network sampling was initially used to collect the data from migrant professionals working in professions where a certain level of qualification or professional skill was required. To maximize the variation in the sample and deal with potential randomization issue, the network sampling was followed by snowball sampling, where participants were requested to invite other professional migrants to participate in the project. The combination of these sampling techniques increased the variation in our representative sample (Patton, 2015). Data were obtained via an online questionnaire. A total of 156 completed questionnaires were received. A 116 useable responses were included in the analysis after screening the data for missing and unengaged responses. The demographic characteristics of participants are illustrated in Table 1 Of the 116 participants, 66 (56.9%) respondents were males, and 50 (43.1%) were females. In terms of age, 11 (9.5%) respondents fall in the range of 18–29 years old, 47 (40.5%) within the age bracket of 30–39 years, 31 (26.7%) 40–49 years, and 27 (23.3%) were above 50 years old.

Table 1.

Participants’ demographic characteristics.

Variable	N	%
Professional area
Engineering	34	29.3
Science and mathematics	14	12.1
Technology	18	15.5
Education	22	19.0
Social work	15	12.9
Sales and marketing	10	8.6
Other	3	2.6
Age
18–29 years old	11	9.5
30–39 years old	47	40.5
40–49 years old	31	26.7
Above 50 years old	27	23.3
Gender
Male	66	56.9
Female	50	43.1

Measurement

All constructs were measured using multi-item scales. Career Turnover Intention (CTI) was measured adapting the scale used in Van der Heijden et al.’s (2018) study. A five-point rating system ranging from (1) never to (5) every day was used to rate the responses. Items for the measurement of Affective and Continuance Commitment (AC and CC) were adopted from the scale developed by Meyer et al. (1993), and a 7-point rating set was used for these items. The five-point Likert scale developed by Demerouti et al. (2010) was adapted to measure Burnout (BU). The 7-point scales used in Fu’s study (2011) were adapted to measure Professional Self-Efficacy (PSE) and Limited Career Alternatives (LCA).

Statistical analysis

Convergent and discriminant validity of the measurement model was tested against Fornell and Larcker’s (1981) validity determination criteria. All Composite Reliability (CR) values were above the threshold value of 0.70. The Average Variance Extracted (AVE) values were also above 0.50 except for CTI, for which the AVE value is slightly low (0.47). The convergent validity of the constructs was concluded adequate based on the CR, Cronbach Alpha, and AVE values presented in Table 2 (Lam, 2012).

Table 2.

Reliability and validity.

	CR	α	AVE	CTI	BU	CA	CC	PSE	ACA
CTI	0.73	0.73	0.47	0.69
BU	0.77	0.76	0.54	0.24	0.73
AC	0.74	0.73	0.50	−0.22	−0.28	0.71
CC	0.81	0.80	0.52	0.11	0.28	−0.05	0.72
PSE	0.84	0.79	0.65	−0.20	−0.30	0.04	−0.26	0.81
LCA	0.78	0.75	0.55	0.14	0.09	−0.01	0.63	−0.07	0.74

CR: Composite reliability; α: Cronbach’s α; AVE: Average Variance Extracted; Bold values in diagonal: Squared root of AVE.

The variance inflation factor (VIF) value was measured to assess multicollinearity. The VIF values for BU, CTI, ACA, and PSE were 1.18, 1.12, 1.04, and 1.16, respectively, which were lower than the threshold value of 2.5 (Allison, 1999). Thus, there are no multicollinearity issues in the data.

The confirmatory factor analysis results determined the goodness of model fit, χ² = 295.145 (d.f. = 238, p = 0.007), (cmin/df) = 1.24 (<3), CFI = 0.95 (>0.95), RMSEA = 0.046 (<0.05), PCLOSE = 0.651 (>0.05) (Hu and Bentler 1999).

This research undertook several approaches to minimize Common Method Variance (CMV), including anonymity of the participants, careful questionnaire validity process, and inclusion of reverse questions (Podsakoff et al., 2012). Furthermore, the CMV was checked by conducting Harman’s Single Factor test (Podsakoff et al., 2003). The total variance explained was 17.98% which was well below the reference value of 60%, confirming the absence of CMV in the sample.

Test of hypotheses

Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) using AMOS was undertaken to evaluate the proposed relationships among constructs. The model was controlled for gender and age to statistically remove their effects. The structural model fit was confirmed with GFI = 0.95 (≥0.95), (cmin/df) = 1.28 (<3), CFI = 0.95 (>0.95), and RMSEA = 0.046 (<0.05) (Kline, 2005).

As presented in Table 3, the results of path analysis show that the effect of BU is negatively significant on AC, confirming H1a (B = −0.345; C.R. = −3.773; p < 0.0001). The test outcomes also support H1b revealing the strong positive relationship between BU and CC (B = 0.181; C.R. = 2.568; p < 0.01).

Table 3.

Hypotheses test results.

Hypothesis	Path	B	p-value	Finding
H1a	BU to AC	−0.345	<0.0001	Supported
H1b	BU to CC	0.181	<0.01	Supported
H2	BU to AC through CTI	−0.088	<0.05	Supported
H3a	BU to AC through PSE	0.096	<0.05	Supported
H3b	BU to CC through PSE	0.103	<0.05	Supported
H4	BU to CTI through PSE	0.074	<0.05	Supported
H5	LCA to CC	−0.648	<0.0001	Supported

To investigate the hypothesized mediation effects, the model was bootstrapped with a 5,000 resampling procedure at a 95% confidence level. As presented in Table 3, CTI mediates the relationship between BU and AC (B = −0.088, p = 0.034), supporting H2. The indirect effect of BU on AC through PSE was also significant (B = 0.096, p = 0.045), confirming H3a. Similarly, H3b was supported, revealing that PSE mediates the relationship between BU and CC (B= 0.103, p=0.010). Furthermore, test results confirm the mediation effect of PSE on the relationship between BU and CTI (B = 0.074, p = 0.036).

Finally, the path analysis outcomes supported H5 revealing that the effect of LCA is significant on CC (B = 0.648, p < 0.0001).

Discussion and conclusions

Building upon previous literature, the current research investigated the effects of the most prevalent internal and external factors of burnout (Koseoglu Ornek et al., 2020) and limited career alternatives (Fernando and Cohen, 2016) on skilled migrants’ commitment to their organization. To fully explore the ways in which workplace burnout shapes skilled migrants’ commitment to the organization, the mediation roles of career turnover intention and professional self-efficacy were examined. The findings showed that burnout impacts both affective and continuance forms of commitment, but in different directions. While burnout lowers skilled migrants’ affective commitment toward their organization, their continuance commitment increases significantly with the high level of burnout. These findings can be explained by drawing from the organizational commitment (Meyer et al., 1989) and the COR (Hobfoll, 1989) theories. As outlined by Meyer et al. (2002), the nature of the attachment between employees and their organization is distinctive of the form of the commitment they develop toward the organization. While the bond between affectively committed members of organization is based on their emotional attachment, employees with high continuance commitment develop an attachment to the organization out of necessity or lack of alternatives. Consequently, behavioural displays of these two forms of commitment differ in terms of the level of energy or resources required by employees. Affective commitment has been characterized by employees' willing involvement in extra-role activities and requires an abundance of resources, while continuance commitment is associated with the lack of engagement and requires a minimum level of resources. According to the COR theory, employees tend to protect their valuable resources and compensate for the loss of their resources by avoiding resource-demanding tasks. Thus, burned-out employees experiencing resource depletion are more likely to lower their affective commitment in order to avoid any further loss of their valuable resources (Li, 2014). Employees exposed to workplace burnout tend to minimize their contribution to the organization, and they are more likely to develop continuance commitment where a minimum level of resources is required (Sethi et al., 1999).

Furthermore, this research confirmed the mediating role of career turnover intention between burnout and affective commitment. This finding is consistent with previous research that established a significant link between employee burnout and career turnover intention (Van Der Heijden et al., 2019). In their study of nursing professionals, Van Der Heijden et al. (2019) found that higher burnout levels led to a higher level of career turnover intention. Extending the findings of previous studies, the current research revealed that skilled migrants who develop career turnover intention in response to burnout at their workplace tend to experience withdrawal cognition, and, as a result, their affective commitment is declined. This finding is aligned with the previous literature. Barthauer et al. (2020) investigated the relationship between employee burnout and career turnover intention within the academic scientist profession in Germany. Their findings were explained through the lens of COR theory, and career turnover intention was introduced as a coping mechanism that helps employees avoid further loss of resources (Barthauer et al., 2020).

Moreover, the mediating role of professional self-efficacy was examined, and it was confirmed that professional self-efficacy mediates the relationship between employee burnout and two forms of organizational commitment: affective and continuance. Similarly, the results demonstrated that professional self-efficacy mediates the relationship between employee burnout and career turnover intention. Although the negative association between burnout and self-efficacy was extensively investigated by previous studies, in those studies, self-efficacy was considered as one of the personal resources supporting employees in dealing with workplace burnout (Shoji et al., 2016). The current study, however, focused on professional self-efficacy and the diminishing impact of burnout on this valuable source of employee resources. It was demonstrated that skilled migrants’ professional self-efficacy could be negatively impacted by workplace burnout, ultimately leading to a lower level of affective commitment and a higher level of continuance commitment and career turnover intention. These findings can be explained through the lenses of expectancy and COR theories. Burned out migrant workers who are unable to fully achieve their professional goals due to lack of resources develop negative feelings about their professional capabilities (Lee and Akhtar, 2007). Those employees are less likely to exert effort towards resource-demanding duties as they don’t feel capable of delivering the expected outcomes and are more likely to detach from the organization. Thus, a lower level of professional self-efficacy of burned-out employees leads to a lower level of affective commitment and a higher level of continuance commitment. On the other hand, to regain their resources, those employees reconsider their career choices and develop career turnover intention.

Finally, the findings of this research revealed that limited career alternatives for skilled migrants could significantly increase their continuance commitment to the organization. Consistent with the literature on organizational commitment, this research shows that limited options result in employees' emotional detachment from the organization, impacting the type of commitment that binds them to the organization (Aten et al., 2016; Fu, 2011). Skilled migrants with limited career options to choose from tend to develop a sense of necessity to stay with the organization, and their commitment is driven by lack of alternatives.

Theoretical implications

As one of the world’s major immigration destinations, with more than 34% of its working population (15 years and above) born overseas, Australia is considered one of the most multicultural countries globally (Hashemi et al., 2019). While the cross-cultural workforce in Australia has significantly contributed to the growth of its economy, little is invested in maximizing the outcomes of the workforce. This is despite the fact that the prevalence of issues undermining migrant workers’ outcomes has been extensively evidenced by previous research (Ullah, 2010). The present research contributes significantly to the body of knowledge in cross-cultural management literature by shifting the focus to the multicultural aspects of the Australian workforce and highlighting the contextual and work-related factors specific to the migrant workers context.

Drawing from the COR theory (Hobfoll, 1989) and building upon existing research, this study makes significant contributions to the literature on cross-cultural management, more specifically on skilled migrants’ careers, exploring the consequences of burnout and limited career alternatives on organizational outcomes. This study accounts for the most prevalent internal and external challenges faced by skilled migrants in exploring the organizational consequences of these challenges (Fernando and Cohen, 2016; Koseoglu Ornek et al., 2020). The current study profoundly advances our understanding of the literature on employee burnout by extending the context to skilled migrants.

Furthermore, while most previous studies focused on the single form of organizational commitment, this research undertakes a more granular approach by taking into account two forms of organizational commitment that differ significantly in terms of employees’ emotional investment in the organization (Meyer et al., 2002). This research is one of the first to explore how the two different forms of commitment, affective and continuance, are impacted differently by the challenges faced by skilled migrants within organizations. This study revealed that the effects of burnout and limited career alternatives on skilled migrants’ commitment to the organization vary based on the mindset underlying their commitment. This research showed that the affective commitment of skilled migrants lowers when they experience burnout while their continuance commitment increases. It was also found that limited career alternatives increase the continuance commitment. Building upon the findings of previous research, which established strong links between continuance commitment and adverse employee and organizational outcomes, this research shows that the quality of employees’ commitment to the organization diminishes by their exposure to burnout and limited career alternatives (Leiter and Maslach, 1988).

The present study extends the application of COR theory (Hobfoll, 1989) by exploring and unfolding how the chain of resource losses that begins with skilled migrants’ burnout leads to adverse organizational outcomes (Barthauera et al., 2020). This research provides a fine-grained perspective on mechanisms through which burnout diminishes the quality of skilled migrants’ commitment to the organization. This research developed a comprehensive model incorporating the mediating roles of professional self-efficacy and career turnover intention to demonstrate how depletion of resources caused by burnout can result in further resource losses by negatively impacting employees' intentions about their career continuity and professional self-efficacy. It was demonstrated that this chain of resource losses ultimately leads to diminishing the quality employees’ commitment.

This research undertook a unique approach in investigating the role of professional self-efficacy by focusing on its mediating role. Although previous studies looked into the relationship between self-efficacy and employee burnout, they primarily treated self-efficacy as one of the individuals’ personal resources in dealing with burnout (Shoji et al., 2016). To the best of the author’s knowledge, this research is one of the first to explore the impact of workplace burnout on employees’ professional self-efficacy and its consequent impact on organizational commitment.

Practical implications

Australia has been successful in attracting professional and skilled migrants and is considered one of the exemplars of skilled migration policy globally. Two-thirds of permanent migrant intakes in Australia are skilled migrants (Harrap et al., 2021). Although positive effects of migration on economic growth have driven policymakers to actively initiate policy reform agenda, the work-related and contextual barriers undermining immigrant outcomes have been largely overlooked. The current research undertook a granular approach examining some of the prominent work-related and contextual factors on migrant workers' outcomes and highlighted the need for a shift in research focus that is not only capable of maximizing migrant workers’ outcomes but is also focused on enhancing their well-being.

Potentially, the findings of this research have important implications for managers in cross-cultural and diverse workplaces. Migrant workers undertaking overqualified jobs represent a hidden intellectual capital within organizations which could gain a competitive advantage for the organization if employers learn how to tap into this capital (Leschke and Weiss, 2020; Sardana et al., 2016). This study suggests that understanding the factors undermining skilled migrants’ career continuity and professional self-efficacy can help organizations avoid consequential effects on their outcomes.

The findings point to the adverse consequences of skilled migrants’ burnout on organizational outcomes. Therefore, it is recommended that managers identify and eliminate the organizational contributors of burnout within their work system. This can be achieved by understanding the needs and potentials of skilled migrants and designing a work system that is responsive to the needs of a diverse workforce, including skilled migrants.

The findings provide managers with insights into the critical role of supportive resources in leveraging the untapped intellectual capital that is brought to the organization by skilled migrants. It was demonstrated how the chain of resource losses could undermine skilled migrants’ professional self-efficacy, ultimately leading to their career turnover intention. Organizations, therefore, should provide skilled migrants with the resources required to not only enhance their professional self-efficacy but also leverage their professional potentials.

Finally, the findings highlighted the importance of the availability of career alternatives in deriving desirable organizational commitment. This shows that the host economies attracting skilled migrants need to lay the foundations required for skilled migrants’ potentials by identifying the contextual factors impacting their overall contributions to the professional workforce. To maximise skilled migrants’ contributions to the professional society of the host economy, there is a need for mutual understanding of their potentials and the career options available for them in the society, so those potentials can serve a meaningful purpose.

Limitation and future research directions

The limitations of the current research are threefold. First, although Australia is one of the main host economies attracting a considerable number of skilled migrants; however, conducting the research project in one context may pose a limitation to the generalizability of the results (Rajendran et al., 2019). Thus, future research can extend the research to other host economies such as the USA and European contexts. In addition, while most professional migrants are drawn from skilled the migration program, some are also admitted through family and humanitarian and student visas, and their performance can be impacted by some contextual factors (Harrap et al., 2021). The current research undertook a granular approach to account for the most prevalent factors within the migrant worker context. Although this approach enabled the current study to elucidate the mechanisms through which those effects are shaped, a more holistic approach in the future will be useful to provide a more comprehensive account of contextual factors. Future studies can extend the scope of the study and investigate the impacts of contextual factors such as visa type, state-dependent labour market and regulations, and work sector (private or public). Second, although the cross-sectional design of the research served the purpose of the research and the common method bias was eliminated through procedural remedies, future research should consider longitudinal methodology to provide more extensive insight into the professional journey of skilled migrants. Third, the current research provided valuable insights into how experiencing burnout undermines skilled migrants’ contributions to organizational outcomes. Future research can extend the scope into employee outcomes and focus on the impact of burnout on their well-being. Finally, given the prevalence of burnout among migrant workers and its adverse effects, it is recommended that future researchers conduct further investigation on the organizational and contextual factors contributing to skilled migrants’ burnout.

Footnotes

Declaration of conflicting interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding

The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

ORCID iD

Leila Afshari

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