ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic has a strong influence on daily lives, health, interpersonal, society, economic, financial, and ecological fields. The COVID-19 outbreak and containment measures have a long-term impact on the economy, businesses, and the working environment, thus, all individuals, society, and planet Earth. During COVID-19, employees must face new ways of working and adapt to changing circumstances in their private lives. The situation caused by the COVID-19 crisis will also affect our future. The old ways of our work and life in the new reality of the changing social patterns will no longer be possible. Many organizations are exploring working from home as a temporary or alternative working arrangement. Still, when employees perform their work at home, they face different problems than when they work in the workplace, leading to differences in their satisfaction with working conditions, well-being, work efficiency, and work engagement. Therefore, organizations should be aware of the importance of an appropriate work environment and appropriate leadership expressed through employer care for employees 2who perform work from home (WFH) during the COVID-19 pandemic. The chapter aims to analyze the effects of employee satisfaction with leadership, which is influencing an organization’s future competitiveness, through five constructs: (i) employee satisfaction with working conditions; (ii) employee satisfaction with employer care about their well-being; (iii) employee satisfaction with employer care about their work engagement; (iv) employee satisfaction with employer care about their work efficiency; and (v) employee satisfaction with employer care about their work motivation during the COVID-19 pandemic. The chapter also aims to develop the multidimensional model and analyze the strength of the relationships among constructs in the model. The research was implemented on a sample of 885 employees. Based on the research, we can confirm positive relationships in: (a) employee satisfaction with working conditions; (b) employee satisfaction with employer care about their well-being; (c) employee satisfaction with employer care about their work efficiency; (d) employee satisfaction with employer care about their work engagement; and (e) employee satisfaction with employer care about their work motivation among employees during the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on the research, we can confirm that although there are differences in the strength of the relationships among researched constructs in the multidimensional model measuring employees’ satisfaction with leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic, there is evidence that more satisfied employees, employees who perceive employer care: (1) feel well; (2) are more motivated; (3) work engaged; and thus (4) efficient; and therefore (5) more contribute to the organization’s future competitiveness.
