THE MEANING OF WORK AS A PREDICTOR OF THE INTENTION TO REMAIN/LEAVE AMONG TEACHERS

ABSTRACT Purpose: Assessing whether the meanings attributed to the work by teachers from a course of professional technological education (PTE), Human Resource Management (HRM) were predictors of the intention to remain in or to leave employment. Originality/value: There is a gap in the literature about the research of the relationship between working meanings and the turnover intention. Also, the recent expansion of PTE in Brazil was not accompanied by the development of research related to different aspects of the work of the teachers who work in PTE, considering that they act in a context of the historical and cultural devaluation of HRM teachers Design/methodology/approach: We developed a multi-methodological study in two stages: 1. Application of semi-structured interviews; 2. Application of structured questionnaires. Findings: The results of the first stage provided an empirical basis for constructing hypotheses concerning the prevalence of leaving intention and the prediction of this phenomenon by the components of work meaning. The results of the second stage confirmed that the leaving intention was prevalent among most HRM teachers. Also, a valuation of the dignity-humanization, the occupation and a sense of the reality of dehumanization and exhaustion are predictors of the likelihood of the leaving intention. We concluded that, despite the increased job opportunities for teachers in PTE, it does not represent a quality alternative, as well as HRM teachers, considered it a temporary option of work.