An Empirical Study on Corporate ESG Behavior and Employee Satisfaction: A Moderating Mediation Model

Abstract

As the role of human capital in enhancing corporate value becomes increasingly prominent in the new economic era, employee satisfaction has garnered widespread attention in organizational behavior theory and business practices. However, constrained by the traditional governance model of “shareholder primacy”, which tends to view employees instrumentally, adverse effects on employee satisfaction and organizational identification persist. Currently, corporate ESG behaviors are flourishing in China, bringing profound and extensive transformations to economic and social sustainability. Yet, the research on whether and how corporate ESG behaviors improve employee satisfaction remains unclear. This study, based on data from the “China’s 100 Best Employers Award” and employing regression analysis on panel data from listed companies on the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges, reveals that corporate ESG behaviors have the potential to enhance employee satisfaction. Transparency in corporate environmental information and internal control mechanisms emerge as the primary means through which corporate ESG behaviors elevate employee satisfaction. Furthermore, heightened environmental awareness among executives and higher educational qualifications among employees strengthen the relationship between corporate ESG behaviors and employee satisfaction.

Keywords

• ESG behavior
• employee satisfaction
• executive environmental awareness
• employee education
• corporate governance