Editorial: Ethical leadership and workplace equity: mediating and moderating mechanisms in emotional labor and well-being

Ethical leadership has gained increasing attention as a contingent condition for equity in the workplace, 11 especially in emotionally stressful work situations where there are changing norms for employee well-12 being. Ethical leadership impacts organizational cultures that are characterised as fair, just and respect 13 for the dignity of the individual employee, which is grounded in fairness, integrity and moral 14 accountability (Edeh et al., 2025). In modern business environments, emotional labour is necessary to 15 attract and retain customers. Emotional labour occurs when an employee learns to control, regulate or 16 suppress or 'act as they think they should', their emotions to fit the role they are expected to play in 17 their workplace or an organisation (Hochschild, 1983). These emotions are acceptable thoughts in the 18 workplace (or at least some level of acceptance, even if they aren't actually felt). For instance, an 19 employee in customer service may want to be polite to a customer even though they are frustrated 20 within, and show some composure when speaking to an irritated customer. This comprehensive view serves as a reminder that ethical leadership is a more complex and 53 multifaceted process that needs to be understood as such rather than through reductionist models that 54 emphasise a linear approach. The analysis of mediating and moderating aspects of the pathway helps 55 closer identification of points of intervention to tackle emotional exhaustion and improve employee 56 health and wellbeing behaviours (Edeh et al.,2024). In this way, this strand of research has enriched 57 the leadership theory and wider debates on sustainable and positive working environments. Creating 58 workplace equity and ethical leadership is no longer an obligation for organisations to be concerned 59 with; it's a business decision they make to succeed in the complex world they're operating in. 60Drawing from the accepted quality papers in this topic, it implies that ethical leadership, when 62 demonstrated, has the capacity to promote workplace equity and emotional labour, which engenders 63 the well-being of employees. Thus, ethical leadership and workplace equity are essential in determining 64 the dynamics of emotional labor and well-being. They influence interpersonal communication 65 processes indirectly, either through influencing the perception of support and trust or through other 66 intervening variables like individual and organisational elements. Acknowledging these pathways can 67 help organisations shift away from some superficial interventions and towards more comprehensive 68 solutions that tackle the structural and psychological aspects of work. Creating ethical and equitable 69 employment environments is ethically sound as well as necessary for improved employee resilience, a 70 decrease in emotional load, and a sustained organisation's effectiveness over time. This editorial is of 71 the view that the findings drawn from the various investigations published in this volume would 72 provide opportunities for industry policymakers and academia to benefit from the implications 73 highlighted by the authors. 74