Health-oriented leadership as a job resource: can staff care buffer the effects of job demands on employee health and job satisfaction?

Purpose Drawing upon the job-demands resources and the job demands-control-support model, the authors examined the buffering effect of health-oriented leadership (HoL) in terms of staff care on the relationship between job demands and employee health and job satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach Cross-sectional data from two studies ( N 1 = 314 and N 2 = 260) were analyzed using moderation analyses. Findings Study 1 showed that staff care mitigates the effect of job demands on strain and health complaints. Study 2 found that staff care also buffered the effect of job demands on general health and job satisfaction. Practical implications Particularly under high job demands, staff care is an important resource for employees' health and satisfaction. Organizations should promote leaders' staff care. Originality/value Findings provide further evidence for the beneficial role of leaders in terms of HoL.