Reshaping Management and Economic Thinking through Integrating Eco-Friendly and Ethical Practices Proceedings of the 3 rd International Conference on Management and Economics 26-27 February 2014 Faculty of Management and Finance, University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka Proceedings of the 3 rd International Conference on Management and Economics, (February 2014). Oral Presentations. pp. 285-292 Faculty of Management and Finance, University of Ruhuna. ISBN 978-955-1507-30-5 Is Occupational Stress a Good Predictor of Turnover Intention? Evidence From a Leading Garment Manufacturer in Sri Lanka D.M. Liyanage, A.M. Madhumini, and B.L. Galhena Dilusha Madushanka Liyanage a , Amarathungage Mekala Madhumini b , and Bandula Lanka Galhena c a Faculty of Management and Finance, University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka. dilushliyanage@gmail.com b Faculty of Management and Finance, University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka. mekhalamadhumani@yahoo.com c Faculty of Management and Finance, University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka. galhena@badm.ruh.ac.lk Abstract Managing occupational stress and the turnover intention have become momentous phenomena in career management literature. Majority of garment factories in Sri Lanka are experiencing high rate of labour turn- over ratio and it becomes a critical problem to maintain their competitive advantages. Various factors af- fecting to the turnover intention and the occupational stress is one of the major determinant which leads the turnover intention. However, the relationship between the occupational stress of the Sewing Machine Op- erators and the Turnover Intention is under considered in Sri Lankan context. Thus, the paper based on two main objectives; irst, it explores the relationship between occupational stress and the turnover intention of sewing machine operators. Second, study aims to identify the signiicant stressors of perceived occupational stress. Two hundred sewing machine operators are surveyed by using a self administered questionnaire and the results of the factor analysis extracted two main components of stressors as subjective work stressors and objective work Stressors. Regression analysis identiied that working condition and the work load as the signiicant predictors of objective work stressors and the social image and the supervisory support as the signiicant predictors of subjective work stressors. Correlation Analysis revealed a positive relationship in between the occupational stress and the turnover intention but no signiicant relationship is found in be- tween these two variables. The indings of the study would be important to the human resource managers of apparel industry to develop their stress management and retention programs. Keywords: occupational stress; objective work stressors; subjective work stressors; turnover intention 1. Introduction The ongoing, endless organizational changes turn the way the things are done and it creates a strain on orga- nization and individuals as well (Vakola & Nikolaou, 2005). Because of these changes the stress to be risen (Sharma & Devi, 2011) and the issue of occupational stress has been widely discussed (Mimura & Grifiths, 2003) in this era. Since the stressors adversely affect physical health and the psychological wellbeing (Watson & Pen- nebaker, 1989) of human beings through emotional, cognitive, behavioural and physiological mechanisms (Levi 1990), the occupational stress is somewhat serious phenomenon (McGowan, Gardner, & Fletcher, 2006) which has to be focussed on. Thus, the scholars deined the occupational stress as ‘a feeling or a condi- tion a person experienced when that person perceives that demands exceed the personal and social resources the individual is able to mobilize’ (Whitt & Wilson, 2007). Many types of events and tensions may generate