Orientation: The major challenge that organisations face in the contemporary competitive environment is to retain talented and productive employees. To ensure that the education system functions optimally, there is a need for strategic human resource management (HRM) practices to be implemented to assist in retaining qualified and experienced teachers.Research purpose: The purposes of this study were to establish the relationship between retention factors and job embeddedness, and to establish whether retention factors positively and significantly predict job embeddedness.Motivation for the study: There is a high turnover among teachers, with many teachers leaving the profession during their early years of teaching. An empirical investigation of the relationship between retention factors and job embeddedness and the outcomes of utilising retention factors and job embeddedness to facilitate the retention of employees is critical.Research approach/design and method: A non-experimental, quantitative survey was conducted on 278 teachers working in the Tshwane Municipality public schools.Main findings: A Pearson’s correlational analysis revealed positive and significant relationships between retention factors and job embeddedness, while multiple regression analyses revealed that retention factors positively and significantly predict job embeddedness.Practical/managerial implications: The results from this study afford concrete implications for employers in search of effective employee retention strategies. The main practical contribution of this study is the way in which it demonstrated that retention factors relate to and predict job embeddedness.Contribution/value-add: This study contributes to the employee retention theory by proposing that employees who are provided with desired retention factors are more likely to be embedded in their jobs and community.

The quality of education is influenced by the engagement, well-being, retention and performance of teachers. Literature shows that teachers are exiting the teaching profession at an alarming rate, and there are various and intertwined reasons compelling teachers to leave their jobs. Research purposes:The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of retention factors on work engagement.Motivation for the study: Turnover among teachers is high, and many teachers are leaving the profession during their early years of teaching. An empirical investigation of the relationship between retention factors and work engagement and the results of utilising retention factors and work engagement to facilitate employee retention is needed.Research approach/design and method: A quantitative design was used, and 278 questionnaires were collected from a convenience sample of teachers from public schools in the Tshwane Municipality.Main findings: Correlational analysis revealed significant relationships between retention factors and work engagement. Multiple regression analyses revealed that retention factors significantly predict work engagement. The main practical contribution of this study is the way in which it has demonstrated that retention factors relate to and predict work engagement.Practical/managerial implications: Organisations should provide their employees with improved compensation, training and development, and career opportunities as this may improve employees' work engagement. Therefore, organisations should determine whether employees are satisfied with these retention factors as provided in the organisation. Contribution/value-add:This study adds to the psychological attachment theory by suggesting that employees satisfied with retention factors in their organisations are more likely to be engaged.