The current research studies the importance of racioethnic equity in the workplace, with a specific focus on management ethnic representativeness (MER). We argue that MER (the alignment of the racioethnic profiles of management and line employees) serves as an indicator of organizational equity and can enhance collective perceptions of fairness and reduce counterproductive work behaviors (CWB). Additionally, we suggest that state-level cultural tightness-looseness (the degree of adherence to social norms and degree of sanctioning) moderates this relationship. In culturally looser states, employees may be more sensitive to equity issues, making MER more impactful on CWB. Across two studies using archival data from the 2002 NSCW and a national retailer, we find consistent support that the relationship between MER and CWBs is moderated by state-level tightness-looseness. Specifically, we find MER's negative effect on CWBs was more pronounced in culturally looser states. This suggests that employees in such environments may be more vigilant to equity issues, making MER a salient factor in their perceptions of organizational equity. This research contributes to the growing body of literature on organizational racioethnic equity and highlights the importance of considering state-level cultural factors in understanding workplace outcomes. Implications, limitations, and future research directions are discussed.
