Tien Chau Thuy Huynh

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
This study explores the relationship among glass ceiling, work–family conflict, job strain, and intention to quit among female employees in the Vietnamese public sector. Data were gathered through a mass survey of 635 respondents in Ho Chi Minh City and An Giang province by utilizing a non-probability sampling method and analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The results indicate that glass ceiling is positively associated with both work–family conflict and intention to quit, while work–family conflict is positively connected with job strain. Job strain is positively associated with intention to quit. Work–family conflict shows no meaningful direct association with intention to quit. However, the results show that job strain mediates the association between work–family conflict and intention to quit, whereas work–family conflict does not significantly mediate the link between glass ceiling and intention to quit. Multigroup analysis reveals that the direct link between glass ceiling and intention to quit is significant only for female employees with children, women in leadership roles, and married women, but not for women without children, non-leaders, or single and divorced women. These findings contribute to the literature on gendered organizations and job strain by showing how structural career barriers and work–family pressures relate to the turnover intentions of female public sector employees in an emerging economy and offer practical implications for retention-oriented human resource policies in Vietnamese public organizations.

Acknowledgment
This research is funded by Vietnam National University HoChiMinh City (VNU-HCM) under a project within the framework of the Program titled “Strengthening the capacity for education and basic scientific research integrated with strategic technologies at VNU-HCM, aiming to achieve advanced standards comparable to regional and global levels during the 2025-2030 period, with a vision toward 2045”.