Managers could make use of performance and appraisal dialogues to keep up to date on staff's access to empowering structures. Recurrent discussions in the management group based on such current information could promote staff's access to power through empowering structures and make job definitions a strategic issue in the organisation.

Background: The importance of staff working life for staff well-being has been demonstrated in several studies; less research has focused on staff working life and older persons' satisfaction with care. Purpose: The study aim was to study relationships between 1) staff assessments of their structural conditions/empowerment in elderly care, psychological empowerment, and job satisfaction and (2) older persons' satisfaction with care. Methods: A multilevel, cross-sectional, and correlational design was applied using questionnaire data on working life (1021 staff members) and unit-level data (40 elderly care units) on older persons' satisfaction with care. Results: Statistically significant relationships were found between all 3 working life variables and older persons' satisfaction with care. Furthermore, the results revealed an indirect/mediating effect of job satisfaction between structural empowerment and satisfaction with care, but not for psychological empowerment. Conclusions: Staff structural empowerment, psychological empowerment, and job satisfaction are linked to older persons' satisfaction with care.