THE EFFECT OF JOB SATISFACTION ON EMPLOYEES’ COMMITMENT AND PRODUCTIVITY

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1. BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY   

The study looks at two important professions, which are teaching and banking. The study is aimed at finding out whether the workers in the banks and schools are satisfied with their jobs. According to Akande (1988) “ An engineer dies with his mistakes, a medical doctor buries his mistakes but the whole society perishes with the mistakes of teachers”. In recent years, the results of school certificate examination released by West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and National Examinations Council (NECO) have been very poor. The society attributed the cause of the general trend to the level of commitment on the part of the teachers who are responsible for teaching the students.

The banking industry has a lot of problems to contend with, which has led to retrenchment of many workers or even the closure of some banks. Hence, the researcher’s decision to carry out the study on the level of commitment of teachers and bank workers in Mainland Local government in Lagos State to establish the relationship between job satisfaction, commitment and productivity. On the other hand, the study will look into state of the bank workers and to see the effect of job satisfaction of employees’ commitment and productivity. Banking area is another powerful aspect of survival of every nation. The folding up of some banks in the recent past needed particular attention. The study will show the reflection of the popular belief that a happy worker is a productive worker and that management can increase productivity of the workers.

In carrying out research on teaching and banking professions, the importance of job satisfaction cannot be over-emphasised. The value judgement, mental and physical commitment and productivity explain why the larger society holds organisation accountable for participants’ satisfaction. In as much as individual spends a sizeable portion of his working life in his place of work, it should be pleasant, agreeable and fulfilling. On mental health, Nwaku (1986) posited that discontentment about specific parts of our lives tend to have a spill over effect and colour our outlook people who feel bad about many other things including family life, leisure activities and even life itself can hardly commit themselves to the job which results in low productivity. In addition, job satisfaction is undoubtedly related to physical health. Palmore (1969) posited that people who like their work are likely to live longer. When one is not satisfied with ones job, there is tendency to be frustrated which could lead to low productivity and possibly strike.

In this research, I shall look into motivational strategies used by teaching and banking sectors, and then compare the levels of their productivity. The teachers are life moulders, the future of the society is in their hands and as a result of this, teachers have put in their best in doing this without any disturbance or distraction. The tone of people concerning teaching profession is nothing to write home about; the government is not helping the situation because their salaries are not paid on time. There is an adage that says a hungry man is an angry man, so the needs of teachers need to be met in order to teach effectively. One of the most difficult situations in which to introduce changes to people’s job is where they already have a basic feeling of insecurity. So, in many ways, the economic climate in Nigeria is hardly conducive to a general movement, which centres on altering jobs and work organizations as a way of improving the quality of working life. The increasingly rapid emergency of new technology of all kinds of is creating its own impetus for change and forcing many employers to re-appraise their organisational structure, as well as their product ranges and their methods of manufacturing, neither are the service industries immune, since the rapid progress of all forms of information technology promises to bring about radical changes in the office, in retailing, and even in the personal services areas. At the same time people’s basic feelings about work continue to change, as part of a wider shift in social attitudes. School Leavers, in particular, have vastly different job expectations from those of their parents.