The Moral Significance of Employee Loyalty

Abstract: Expectations and possibilities for employee loyalty are shifting rapidly, particularly in the for-profit sector. I explore the nature of employee loyalty to the organization, in particular, those elements of loyalty beyond the notion of the ethical demands of employee loyalty. I consider the moral significance of loyalty for the employee and whether the development of ties of loyalty to the work organization is in fact a good thing for the employee or for the employer. I argue that employees have a natural inclination to extend loyalty to the organization and that organizations consequently have an obligation to make clear to employees the degree to which the organization will recognize and reward employee loyalty.