Sustaining a diverse educational workforce: the impact of inclusive leadership on teacher retention

Purpose This study investigates the impact of inclusive leadership (IL) on teacher retention within an increasingly diverse teaching workforce. Design/Methodology/Approach Grounded in social exchange theory (SET), it explores how organizational justice, teacher empowerment and job satisfaction mediate this relationship in diverse educational settings. Data were collected from 440 Vietnamese and Taiwanese secondary school teachers through an online survey and analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences 22 (SPSS 22) and SMARTPLS 3.0 software. Findings The results reveal a negative relationship between IL and teachers’ intention to leave (TIL), partially mediated by organizational justice, teacher empowerment and job satisfaction. Additionally, Vietnamese teachers exhibited a higher intention to leave compared to their Taiwanese counterparts. Originality/Value This work is original in integrating SET and conservation of resource theory to explain how IL functions as a relational, resource-building process that reduces TIL through organizational justice, empowerment and job satisfaction. It further shows that these mechanisms are sensitive to national context, given the higher turnover intentions among Vietnamese than Taiwanese teachers, underscoring the role of country-specific conditions in retention research. Finally, it translates these mechanisms into concrete leadership development and policy strategies to enhance teacher retention.