Customer citizenship as a reaction to hotel's fair treatment of staff: Service satisfaction as a mediator

Abstract

Little is known about how guests respond to a hotel based on the way they perceive management's treatment of staff. This study suggests that during their stay at the hotel, the more guests witness episodes where staff members are fairly treated, the more they will display (a) satisfaction with hotel service and (b) customer citizenship behaviour directed at the hotel as a whole. It then suggests that (c) service satisfaction serves as a mediator to explain why justice perceptions would lead guests to citizenship behaviour. Data were collected from 343 guests in seven sampled hotels in the Canary Islands (Spain). Results provide support for the effects of justice on citizenship and partial mediation. Given that guests' citizenship helps the hotel to function, the results warn managers about looking the other way' or getting involved in episodes of employee mistreatment. In addition, the support for service satisfaction as a mediator suggests that by striving to achieve management's fair treatment of staff, managers also communicate to guests that they aim to provide satisfactory service and, therefore, are deserving of their help.