IntroductionRecent discussions on silent resignation have highlighted employees’ growing tendency to restrict their work contributions to formally required duties, raising concerns regarding employee well-being and sustainable work behavior. From an occupational psychology perspective, work-life balance constitutes an important psychological resource that may shape employees’ responses to workplace demands. Grounded in Social Exchange Theory, this study examines the relationship between work-life balance and silent resignation while investigating the moderating roles of emotional intelligence and psychological empowerment among bank employees.MethodsThe study employs a quantitative, cross-sectional survey design with 518 white-collar employees across 69 provinces in Türkiye, analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM).ResultsThe findings indicate a strong negative association between perceived work-life balance and silent resignation. Furthermore, emotional intelligence acts as a significant individual-level boundary condition, such that the negative association between work-life balance and silent resignation becomes more pronounced at higher levels of emotional intelligence. In contrast, psychological empowerment does not significantly moderate this relationship, highlighting the potential contextual limits of empowerment in highly regulated and standardized work environments.DiscussionPractically, these findings suggest that organizations should prioritize work-life balance initiatives while considering employees’ emotional capabilities and ensuring that empowerment practices are supported by meaningful opportunities for autonomy and decision-making.