Research paper on Worker Attitude and Job Satisfaction

Thesis Statements:

Attitude and Job Satisfaction: A worker attitude towards work is directly linked to the job satisfaction; a worker who is satisfied with his job performs better and excels at what he does. It is therefore imperative for a company to understand the attitude of its workers and measure the job satisfaction of its employees, as job satisfaction is essential for productivity.

Introduction

Worker attitude and job satisfaction deals with how an organization behaves. It involves the management directing employees into improving organizational and personal effectiveness. It plays an enormous role in determining the attitudes of employees and their job satisfaction. When an employee is happy, it is usually because they are satisfied with their work. This also improves the quality of their work. Attitude and job satisfaction may not fall completely on the management but also on the employees. If employees enjoy their work, they will not need external motivation from management, but instead the satisfaction they attain from completing their work will motivate them (Robbins, 2004).
Job satisfaction is an individual’s contentment with their work. Its effect on productivity is either positive or negative. The relationship between job satisfaction and job productivity is however not consistent. An individual may still obtain high job productivity without having the satisfaction in the work. This happens mostly when money is their motivation. Another motivator is improving in his or her work in order to receive a promotion. Other employees may increase their productivity due to the satisfaction they get from their work. A reason for job satisfaction may also come from an employee getting a good salary. It improves job satisfaction as long as an employee has knowledge of the fact that they get fair payment for their efforts at the end of the day.
Job satisfaction has an effect on an individual’s satisfaction with life. If an employee does not get satisfaction in their work, they may seek for satisfaction in other work unrelated areas. This provides fulfillment and balance in their life. He or she may also be content with work as it relates with those work unrelated areas. Job dissatisfaction may also cause an employee to quit (Robbins, 2004).

How Workers Attitude and Job Satisfaction Affect Their Work.

An employee’s attitude towards authority may affect his or her relationship with management. Negative attitude towards authority will cause clashes in the work place. Psychology is another reason that affects an individual’s attitude. Another reason for a negative attitude towards authority is jealous for their position. This attitude affects job productivity in a negative way. If the workers attitude is a negative one so is their ability to produce positive results. Worker attitude and job satisfaction are two factors that affect a company’s productivity. There are different issues that affect worker attitude and job satisfaction either in a negative or positive way. These issues include the management, employee, sociology, communication, culture, and work environment.

Management Role

The management’s style of leading plays a huge role in worker attitude and job production. Empowerment is one factor that can motivate better productivity. If the management gives an employee opportunity to work according to their own standards, preferred that these standards measure up to those of the company, job productivity will increase. Human empowerment is satisfactory to every individual. Self-satisfaction leads to job satisfaction. We also have strategic planning by management. This is crucial when dealing with influencing job productivity. An example of a way to motivate employees is the management offering them opportunities for promotions and pay rise negotiations. This will encourage job productivity since employees will want to receive these rewards (Jackson, 2002).

Organizational objectives also affect how the management relates with the employees. If the organizational goal is to achieve a certain percentage of profit in a business year, then it will exert pressure on the employees to increase productivity. Positive influence is not the only way to ensure an increase in productivity. Some organizations offer contracts that clear states the amount of productivity needed from employees. This is in the case of sales and marketing where a sales representative needs to achieve a target on a certain deadline. This may mount pressure on the employees and in turn affect their job satisfaction. In some cases, the management is not as strict with the employees. The problem with this is that the employees might eventually relax on the job. An organization may also decide to add more working days depending on their goals. Complying with such a decision is hard and it may leave the employees bitter and resentful towards management. This attitude will affect job productivity, as the employees will arrive to work with no motivation. Another factor in work attitude is time away from work. Apart from free time on the weekend, which is compulsory according to work ethics, employees need to take time off from work. This normally is the leave period (Jackson, 2002).

Employee Role

Some individuals choose professions that they like while others end up in their profession due to pressure. Pressure may come from the need to make money or a parent or guardian deciding on what their kids will do. When one chooses something they love doing or has an interest in, then they are content and happy about what they do. Love for a profession encourages a positive attitude. This is all the motivation employees need when it comes to productivity. A happy employee is a productive employee. When an employee loves what they are doing, they attain job satisfaction. This automatically affects productivity in a positive way. Productivity however suffers with negative employees who only work to make money. Their aim is to increase their productivity in order to get more money but this eventually makes them stressful and bitter. Since they have no interest in the work, satisfaction is hard for them to achieve. This is another form of motivation but is not sufficient. The two major ways for employees to improve, productivity in their professional areas is the choice of profession.

Employees need ways to relieve their stress if they want to improve their work attitude and productivity. Work related stress is common among most employees. This is especially by employees that do not experience any job satisfaction from their work. Stress is something that may lead to more serious illnesses. This lowers productivity from the absence of employees in the work place. Stress is relieved by taking breaks from work, exercising, socializing with friends, and having fun. Psychological development is also another factor that affects attitude. Since psychology is what determines human behavior, it affects how we react and relate with others. Every one of us reacts differently to different situations. An example is when management is brutally honest about an employees work, some may take it is a warning to do better others may take it as criticism and give up. This depends on how an individual makes decisions. External factors such as the family, relationships, financial status are a few of other things that also affect the employees’ attitude. A healthy employee is a productive employee and a happy one.

Social Role

Our social behavior affects our work. This is in regard to introverts and extroverts. An introvert will not easily socialize with people. This affects their performance in a situation that needs teamwork. Teamwork requires all individuals to communicate with each other. If employees cannot work well together, it affects productivity. A company that encourages teamwork experiences higher productivity. Extroverts are aggressive people and some people may try to avoid them. Relationships in the work place affects attitudes and in turn productivity. If employees have a close relationship with each other, employees work well together and their attitudes improve as well. An improvement in attitude improves job productivity and satisfaction. In order to improve this relationship, some organizations encourage team building by dedicating a few days for members to socialize. This is through encouraging games in this sessions or providing projects for them to do. Interaction between employees helps them know each other better and beyond the work place. It improves their relationship and attitude towards each other (Edwards, 2004).

Social role also involves the relationship between employees and management. In most organizations, this relationship is usually strictly professional. The only time the two interact is while it involves work. This is a way for the management to ensure that they have an upper hand towards the employees. This may lead to employees withdrawing from the management due to fear. Fear affects productivity, as the employee cannot approach the management if he/she is having trouble. They may imagine that the management will see this as a weakness. A good relationship is one where the management associates with its employees openly. Respect is the only thing that needs establishment between the two. This way, it is easy for employees to approach the management. A good relationship will improve employee productivity by improving their attitude and encouraging job satisfaction. Another social factor is competition. This is due to human nature to prove themselves. Employees may compete amongst each other for appraisal or a chance to grab an available higher position. This is a way for productivity to improve. Their attitude will depend on whether the competition is a healthy or an unhealthy one. An unhealthy one will lead to stress (Edwards, 2004).

Communication

Communication is how information transmits between the management and employees or between the employees themselves. Employees need to be free with the management in order to approach them when they are having trouble. Good communication has a positive effect on the employee’s job satisfaction. When all their needs a met, they can easily perform their duties efficiently. This increases job productivity and in turn improves the workers attitude. Communication is also important between employees. Employees need to maintain a good relationship with each other in order to communicate efficiently. Respect is an important factor in communication. In every organization, respect needs to drive how they communicate.
A good way to implement communication between management and employees is by planning meetings. These meetings should allow employees to ask questions and express their opinion. Management should ask employees for their input and suggestions in matters concerning them. This will make the employees feel even more part of the organization. It will improve the relationship of everyone in the organization. Good communication leads to a good relationship that in turn improves employee attitude and job productivity (Mitchell).

Culture

The differences in culture affects people’s attitude. Different cultures have different practice. Some cultures do not allow their employees to work for certain amounts of hours. This may affect an individual if a transfer occurs and they get to a work situation that encourages more working hours. He/she will develop a negative attitude towards work. In some cultures, individuals are risk takers. They enjoy doing things beyond their capabilities. They attain satisfaction both in life and in work. There is no better motivation to improve their job productivity than this. In others, employees are hardworking. Their attitude towards work is usually a positive one (Jackson, 2002).

Work environment

A positive work environment improves on employee attitude. This depends on other employees, the management and the available resources. If an organization takes care of their employees by providing all needed resources, then their productivity will improve. Job productivity increases a business performance and profits, which in turn ensures that employees receive their salary frequently. When the business performs well then the employees are happy. A good performance in the organization gives the employees a positive attitude that improves their individual performance. As long as the employees are happy and performing, job productivity will increase. Job satisfaction improves employee’s relationships with customers. A good working relationship such as that one will increase on the sales of goods and services. Some company’s offer their employees bonuses especially during the holidays. This acts as an encouragement to the workers and improves their relationship with management. In departments such as sales and marketing, employee’s performance can improve if given bonuses or commission when they bring in more sales clients. With this knowledge, the employee’s performance is sure to improve drastically (Edwards, 2004).

Conclusion

The duty of management and the employee in improving workers attitude is debatable. Some may argue that it is up to the employee to ensure that they attain job satisfaction from their work, as they are the only ones in control of their attitude and performance. It is also possible to say that all the responsibility is entirely the managements. They decide on the nature of the environment in which the employee works. The management holds the power to control employee salary, off time and promotion. External factors such as the environment, social situations, and culture also affect worker attitude and job satisfaction. In my opinion, it is up to both the parties to decide on worker attitude and job satisfaction.