Decent Work (DW) is an aspirational concept introduced in 1999 by the International
Labour Organization (ILO) and is currently part of the 8th Sustainable Development
Goal of the United Nations 2030 Agenda. It is a fundamental pillar for sustainable
organizational performance, contributing to employee well-being, motivation, and
productivity and, in highly structured environments such as the military and academia,
can be differentiating. This study examines the relationship between leadership
influence on employees' perceptions and DW. Leadership plays a crucial role in
fostering conditions that support DW. Three key leadership approaches are explored:
Empowering Leadership, which enhances employee autonomy; Responsible Leadership,
which aligns organizational activities with the broader ecosystem; and Ethical
Leadership, which ensures consistency between actions, values, and moral principles of
the organization and society. This study aims to study the impact on DW through
interventions designed for leadership development. The research was conducted in two
distinct contexts: the Portuguese Air Force and one of the oldest universities in Portugal,
Coimbra University. Both have hierarchical structures and specific challenges that make
leadership analysis particularly relevant. Participants include leaders and teams from
both organizations based on volunteered participation. Through a three-wave mixed
methods study within a participatory intervention approach, several instruments
measuring DW and leadership practices were applied. The results will be presented and
discussed, highlighting the impact of leadership interventions on DW perception and
offering practical insights for fostering positive organizational change.