LEADERSHIP PRACTICES AND TURNOVER INTENTION OF TECHNICAL STAFF IN KENYAN SCHEDULE OPERATING PASSENGER AIRLINES

Abstract

The airline industry is facing various challenges since the start of commercial aviation in the 1920s. One of the major challenges is related to the human resource aspect, specifically the turnover intention of highly skilled technical staff. Leadership practices have a significant effect on the turnover intention of technical staff working in Kenyan schedule operating passenger airlines. So, the main objective of the study is to examine how leadership practices affect technical staff turnover intention. A descriptive survey design was used as a research design for the study. A total of 335 respondents were selected using proportionate stratified sampling technique from the target population of 2058 technical staff working in the 12 airlines that operate schedule passenger flight in Kenya. To determine the sample size Yamane's formula was used. Open and close ended questionnaires were used to collect data. For the analysis and presentation of the data, the researcher used descriptive and inferential statistics. To analyze the effect of the independent variable (leadership practices) on the dependent variable (technical staff turnover intention) and to test the hypothesis, a multiple regression model was used. The major findings of the study established that leadership practices significantly influence technical staff turnover intention in Kenyan schedule operating passenger airlines. The study concludes that the presence of acceptable leadership practices will have a positive contribution in curbing the turnover intention of technical staff. The study recommends that airlines should ensure the presence of acceptable leadership practices to deal with the issue of technical staff turnover.