Distributive justice is concerned with the fairness of the outcomes that employees receive. Outcomes can be allocated in many ways. For example, we could distribute raises equally among employees, or we could base raises on which employees need money the most. Employees tend to perceive their outcomes are fairest when they are distributed equitably.

The way we have described things so far, it would seem that individuals gauge distributive justice and equity in a rational, calculative way as they compare their outcome–input ratios to those of others. But the experience of justice, and especially of injustice, is often not so cold and calculated. People base distributive judgments on an emotional reaction to the way they think they are being treated.