BACKGROUND: Performance management is pivotal in determining employee outcomes. Firms may face undesired consequences in the absence of an impartial and fair performance appraisal system. Organizational justice theory predicts the negative outcomes of performance appraisal politics that the study examines in the form of mediating and outcome variables. OBJECTIVES: There is a paucity of research regarding the impact of justice/fairness perceptions on employee outcomes in the performance appraisal context. Therefore, the study examines the effect of performance appraisal politics on deviant work behavior with the mediating role of job satisfaction. METHODS: Survey data were collected from 309 employees of banks through a likert type scale questionnaire. Structural equation modeling was used to test the model. RESULTS: The results show that performance appraisal politics is positively related to deviant work behaviors. The mediating role of job satisfaction in the relationship is also substantiated. CONCLUSIONS: The findings confirm the view of organizational justice theory regarding the negative impact of performance appraisal politics. The findings also highlight the need to design effective interventions to mitigate the negative effects of such politics. The study provides fresh insight into the dynamics of the interplay between performance appraisal politics, job satisfaction and deviant work behaviors.