Work and Wellbeing for LGBT + Employees Perceiving a Calling: The Role of Perceived Diversity Climate

Though much evidence has been put forth to describe the benefits and consequences of perceiving work as a calling, little is known about the experiences of vocational calling for gender and sexual minority (i.e., LGBT+) employees. As workplace diversity climate has been demonstrated as influential to LGBT + employees’ experiences based in Signaling Theory, we integrated Work as Calling (WCT) and Signaling Theory to explore the hypothesized role of diversity climate perceptions in supporting LGBT + employee outcomes derived from calling perceptions. Using a three timepoint, time-lagged assessment of 404 LGBT + workers, we found results supporting the notion that LGBT + employees’ perceived calling and diversity climate perceptions were associated with greater job satisfaction and satisfaction with life, and lower turnover intentions and burnout. Results further supported the role of perceived calling being more strongly negatively related to turnover intentions for LGBT + employees working in stronger (versus weaker) diversity climate perceptions, though evidence of moderation was not found for other examined criterion variables. This study contributes to an increased understanding of how and under what conditions perceiving a calling relates to LGBT + employee experiences under the WCT model, underscoring the benefits of perceived calling and organizational diversity climate as worthy of encouragement.