Third sector employees have claimed to enjoy high job satisfaction and low turnover intentions because
their work is considered intrinsically rewarding. Employees have strong motivation for public
service and they consider the organization?s goals as their own. This makes work meaningful and
thus reduces turnover intentions. Changes in the third sector institutional environment, however,
have intensified the working environment. This probably undermines job quality and thus increases
turnover intentions. The analysis conducted among Finnish third sector employees showed that
third sector employees report more turnover intentions than their counterparts in the public or
private sector. This is mostly because of low job quality. Motivation for public service was not
enough to retain employees in the organization if their values were not congruent with those of
the employer organization. Thus, connection between public service motivation and turnover intentions
is dependent on the organizational context. More important than employees? desire to help
others is their sharing of the employer organization?s values and that the organization provides
high job quality.
