"This article contributes to the debate on the link between reciprocal motives of employees and HRM practices by studying the behavioral effects of intra-firm trainings on absence behavior and turnover probability. We apply the gift-exchange framework and offer a behavioral perspective that helps to explain why firms invest in trainings that provide mainly general skills. We argue that employees may reciprocate the gift of firm-sponsored training with higher levels of costly effort or commitment. We employ a stringent methodological approach based on panel data of a large multinational firm and find that, in contrast to human capital predictions, general trainings lead to a decrease in turnover rates. Most notably, we find the strongest effect for employees with the lowest levels of firm tenure. This is a quite novel result as this group should face the lowest separation costs, for instance, due to the accumulation of firm-specific human capital. Hence, intra-firm trainings are an important retention device, especially for newly or recently hired employees. Furthermore, a short-term decrease in absenteeism indicates a temporary, reciprocal reaction by employees."

Support: Paper