From Transportation Support to Employment Retention: How Commuting Stress and Job Satisfaction Shape Turnover Intention Among Workers with Severe Disabilities In South Korea

Background and Purpose

Employment retention remains a critical challenge for workers with severe disabilities, particularly due to structural barriers beyond the workplace. In South Korea, a government program provides cash subsidies for commuting expenses, improving transportation convenience by reducing travel time and costs and expanding available travel modes. However, financial support alone may not ensure employment retention unless subjective commuting experiences are addressed.

Importantly, current policy insufficiently accounts for differential commuting challenges across disability types. While individuals with physical or visual impairments may experience stress due to physical accessibility barriers, those with intellectual and developmental disabilities may face anxiety related to unpredictability and environmental changes during travel. Despite these differences, existing policies primarily rely on objective indicators such as time, cost, and distance, which may limit their effectiveness.

Drawing on spillover theory, commuting stress can extend beyond a psychological burden and transfer into the work domain, influencing job satisfaction and turnover intention. This study examines whether commuting stress and job satisfaction sequentially mediate the relationship between transportation convenience and turnover intention, elucidating mechanisms through which transportation convenience influences employment outcomes.

Methods

Data were collected from 600 workers with severe disabilities participating in a government-supported commuting subsidy program administered by the Korea Employment Agency for Persons with Disabilities. An SMS-based survey was conducted between October 22 and November 1, 2024. Transportation convenience was measured using three items assessing perceived improvements in commuting time, cost, and mode options. Commuting stress was assessed using the 21-item Multimodal Commuting Stress Scale, and job satisfaction was measured with five items. Turnover intention was assessed with a binary indicator reflecting consideration of job change due to commuting-related issues. Serial mediation analysis was conducted using PROCESS macro (Model 6).

Results

Transportation convenience was not directly associated with turnover intention (direct effect = .250, 95% CI = -.078, .557). However, it was negatively associated with commuting stress (B = -.135, p < .001), which was positively associated with turnover intention (B = 1.075, p < .001), indicating a significant indirect effect (indirect effect = -.145, 95% CI = -.286, -.045). Transportation convenience was positively associated with job satisfaction (B = .483, p < .001), which was negatively associated with turnover intention (B = -.579, p < .001), yielding a second indirect pathway (indirect effect = -.280, 95% CI = -.467, -.124). A significant sequential indirect effect through commuting stress and job satisfaction was also observed (indirect effect = -.021, 95% CI = -.047, -.005).

Conclusions

Findings suggest that commuting stress is not merely a psychological factor but a critical mechanism linking transportation conditions to employment outcomes. While financial support improves objective aspects of commuting, its effectiveness may be limited if disability-specific commuting challenges are not addressed. These results highlight the need for policies that move beyond uniform financial support and incorporate tailored approaches reflecting commuting experiences across disability types. Integrating transportation, employment, and social welfare policies may be essential to reduce stress, enhance job satisfaction, and promote sustained labor market participation among workers with severe disabilities.