| This research investigates the extent to which the relationships between perceived disability severity and employee outcomes are moderated by leader empathy and mediated by the quality of leader-member exchange (LMX). The proposed model is built on the premise that a high level of leader empathy can serve as a source of social support thereby mitigating the negative effect of perceived disability. We conduct two independent studies to examine the conditional indirect effect of perceived disability severity on resilience, job accommodation, job satisfaction, performance, and presenteeism through LMX relationships. Data are obtained from employees with musculoskeletal injuries (Study 1, N = 264) and leaders who have supervised employees with musculoskeletal injuries in the past two years (Study 2, N = 224). The results of conditional process analyses partially support the hypothesized moderated mediation model. From the employee perspective, some LMX dimensions mediate the interactive effect of perceived disability on job accommodation, presenteeism, resilience, and job satisfaction. From the supervisor perspective, a high level of leader empathy enhances the positive association between perceived disability and job accommodation through supervisor-subordinate relationships. This research highlights similarities and differences in employees' and supervisors' perspectives. |
