Functional turnover: An empirical assessment.

It has been argued that the traditional method of categorizing employee turnover as voluntary or involuntary has the effect of overstating the gravity of turnover on the organization. A recently suggested taxonomy is used to identify the extent of 'functional/dysfunctional' and 'unavoidable/controllable' employee separations. The analysis of data on employees (N=1389) of Western bank branches which considers both the replaceability and quality of department employees indicates substantial levels of functional (71%) and unavoidable (52%) turnover. The results suggest that the traditional dichotomy may, in fact, substantially overstate the impact of voluntary turnover. (Author)