Abstract : The problem addressed was the low job satisfaction levels of nurses and subsequent nurses' decision to leave the organization. The quantitative correlational survey study involved determining whether a relationship exists between nurses’ perceptions of nurse managers’ leadership style and nurses’ job satisfaction. Eighty-three fulltime medical surgical intensive care nurses in two hospitals in Phoenix, Arizona, completed the Job Description Index for Jobs in General (JID/JIG) and the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ, Form 5X). The results suggest a significant, positive correlation between job satisfaction and perceptions of nurse managers' leadership style by nurses. Nurses with the highest satisfaction scores in three of the six subscales perceived their managers used the transformational leadership style. The mean score for nurses whose managers were rated as transactional was higher than the mean score for nurses whose managers were rated as passive-avoidant. The promotion and supervision subscales and the job in general scale showed a significant relationship with transformational leadership. Implications for healthcare administrative leaders include hiring transformational managers to increase job satisfaction in nurses and offer nurses opportunities for promotion and training.