The effect of ethical leadership behavior on voice behavior via the mediator role of ethical climate: A field study in Malatya

Either national or international organizations mostly cannot achieve sustainability which is one of their important goals. There are many causes to this situation but one of the leading reason is managers who are not obeying ethical principles. In the light of this knowledge it can be said that one of the most important elements to an organization's existential continuity is managers' ethical leadership style. A leader can affect the atmosphere in the organization as well as employees' manners with his/her attitude and behaviors. It is thought that ethical leadership actions result in ethical climate, and employees in the ethical climate can feel safer and express themselves more clearly and comfortably. This study aims to examine the relationship between ethical leadership behavior, ethical climate and voice behavior, and specifically to determine the meditor role of ethical climate on the relationship between ethical leadership behavior and voice behavior. For this aim, data were collected from employees in the various organizations at Malatya Industrial Site, via questionnaire forms. Participation was voluntary, and the input comes from four hundred people. Data was analyzed with SPSS programme. As a result of these analyses it was found that ethical leadership positively effects both ethical climate and voice behavior, and ethical climate has a mediator role on the relationship between the ethical leadership behavior and voice behavior. Keywords: Ethical Leadership, Ethical Climate, Voice Behavior, Sustainability