Grounded in self‐determination and social exchange theories, this study examined two pathways through which overall justice influences job performance. Specifically, we hypothesized need satisfaction as a mediator of the influence of overall justice on intrinsic motivation and trust in organization which, in turn, relate to job performance. Results of structural equation modelling using Mplus revealed that need satisfaction mediated the overall justice–intrinsic motivation relationship as well as the overall justice–trust in organization relationship. We also found that intrinsic motivation mediated the respective influence of need satisfaction and trust in organization on job performance. We interpret our findings as suggesting an integration of need‐based theories of motivation into explanations of the performance implications of justice.