ABUSIVE SUPERVISION - A FORM OF WORKPLACE HARASSMENT: AN EXPLORATORY STUDY IN THE ECUADORIAN HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY

In light of the conspicuous absence of workplace harassment ("acoso labo- ral") in the Ecuadorian Constitution and the country's Labor and Penal Codes, this article re- ports on an exploratory study about abusive supervision, a form of workplace harassment, in the country's hospitality industry. Based on a review of the literature on various forms of workplace harassment, the study investigated employee opinions about their supervisors' be- haviors and found that abusive supervision is a prominent issue in the Ecuadorian hospitality industry and that it is signi�耀cantly related to employees' intentions to leave the organization. The study advocates future research into other components of workplace harassment in these and other industries in the country and into the development of measures that reduce abusive supervision and workplace harassment. Keywords: Workplace harassment, abusive supervi- sion, employee turnover intentions, hospitality, Ecuador.