Causes of Low Levels of Productivity in Workers

Organizations which have goals to achieve require happy and satisfied staff. Organizational climate serves as a measure of individual feelings and perceptions about an organization. Organizational climate includes leadership styles or management, participation in decision making, provision of challenging jobs to employees, personnel policies, reduction of boredom and frustration, provision of good working conditions, provision of benefits and creation of suitable career ladder for academics

In case there is some form of dissatisfaction. The organizational climate is viewed as characterized by the following factors: Unchallenging jobs, lack of recognition for work done well through merit or announcements in meetings, shortage of personnel where they are expected to perform responsibilities, which were supposed to be performed by other employees, lack of feedback about performance, poor communication where there is no two-way communication between subordinates and managers and lack of staff development activities which prevent personnel from being equipped with skill and knowledge that they need in order to provide quality service and lack of material resources which make it difficult for employees to carry out duties When the problems that are mentioned above are perceived, dissatisfaction in the workplace/organization manifest.

Job satisfaction refers to the contentment of the employees because of their jobs that they are doing. It is the personal evaluation of the job conditions (the attitude of the administration, the job itself etc.) or the consequences or (occupational security, wages etc.) acquired from the job. , job satisfaction might be handled as the consequence which results from the comparison between the expectations of the employee from his job & the job in question which is performed. The consequence may emerge as dissatisfaction or satisfaction of the employee from the job. When an employee sees that his expectations are not met in the job environment, then the job dissatisfaction manifests. It leads to the decrease in the workforce productivity, commitment to the job, organizational commitment and increase in the rates of the optional discontinuation by the employees of the job. In addition to being influenced by the satisfaction level, performance is affected by a number of situational and environmental factors such as mechanical breakdowns, inadequate supply of materials, low quality materials, availability of stocks and market forces as well as a worker’s ability. While, in the case of lower-level jobs, job satisfaction seems to be one of the key determinants of performance where little ability is required, Thus, job satisfaction is very important in a workplace because if employees are not satisfied, their commitment, work performance, productivity, as well as the interpersonal relationships among their subordinates and the management tend to be lowered. For instance, in a workplace where work performance is not recognized through salary increases and promotion, productivity of such employees tends to be lowered.

Many managers make use of incentive programmes, in an effort to satisfy the needs of employees despite the fact that research has consistently confirmed that none of the amount of money will convert into sustainable levels of motivation or job satisfaction.

There are a long range of factors combined which affect individual’s level of satisfaction. These include, levels of aspiration and need achievement supervision or leadership (concern for people, task, participation), working conditions, social relationships, perceived long range opportunities, job design (scope, depth, interest, perceived value), perceived opportunities elsewhere.

A prominent distinction has been made between organizational and psychological climate. At the individual level of analysis, individuals’ own perceptions about the work environment constitute the psychological climate, whereas organizational climate has been proposed as an organizational or unit-level construct. When employees within a unit or an organization agree on their perceptions of the work context, unit-level or organizational climate is said to exist. A large number of studies have demonstrated relationships consistently between organizational climate or unit and individual outcomes such as performance, accidents, commitment, satisfaction and involvement.

Organizational climate is composed of cognate sets of values, attitudes and practices that characterize the members of a particular workplace/organization. Organizational climate is defined as consciously perceived environmental factors subject to organizational control. Low coined the term climate to describe the feelings, attitudes and social process of organizations.

Climate in this view, according to him, falls into three major and well-known categories: autocratic, democratic, and laissez-faire. Organizational climate has been defined by Kaczka and Kirk (1978) as a set of attributes, which can be perceived within a particular department or unit or organization or workplace.

Organizational climate corresponds to the identification of employees with the enterprise, the perception of the employees of the enterprise, and also the feelings of employees at work. Several factors are included in the organizational climate which may influence in different ways, the employees attitude towards learning. Many researchers usually understand in-company learning as the way to change organizational climate & culture. This view supposes also inverse influence organizational climate can change (hinder or facilitate) learning in the company.

Organizational environment or climate in the workplace is based on the perception of the enterprise or workplace by employees. It is determined by the relationships between people and organization and relations of subordinations and superiors. They are determined by formal structures, mutual influence of targets, processes and behavior of people. The feelings that at work, an employee has his perception of patterns of behavior, rules, values, ways of management, etc. etc. (these characteristics of a company are known as organizational culture), these factors then influence the behavior of employee and conduct and also the attitude of employee to learning and in-company training.

According to the question, the firm has liberal policies and fringe benefits and is facing the problem of low productivity and high absenteeism. The management should have the task of raising employee productivity, enhancing employee morale and reducing the rate of absenteeism and attrition. Management should carry out an employee morale audit and analyze the findings.

Cases might be:

• Human resource of the firm might be satisfied with compensation part but complain of long working hours, lack of role clarity and may be the employees are provided with short deadlines for completing various work assignments.
• There might be poor and inadequate communication in the organization.
• Other causes may be absence of career planning and succession.
• There may be lack of training and development programmes.
• There may be unsympathetic attitude of superiors towards genuine problems of employees.

The only solution to changing the course of high absenteeism and low productivity is by encouraging employees to do better at workplace. Giving the employees bonuses and incentives will jolt the process and provide drastic absenteeism and productivity change. Most companies which have their sites located in different locations prefer to communicate with their employees and colleagues through internet conference call services. By this way, the management constantly inspires the employees at workplace and triggers them to perform better. The management should analyze and reach to the root cause of the problem, which may be the lack of work life balance. And the organization must take the following measures in the form of work-life balance:

• Concept of flexible working hours should be introduced and also the work week should be reduced to 40 hours a week with two day leave.
• It is advised to offer training and development programme on continuous basis and it should be linked to monetary compensation.
• It is recommended that the succession program and career planning need to be implemented and installed in the organization with proper linkages to training & development program, employee goals and performance evaluation and aspirations of the employees and the skill set and educational qualifications of the employees.
• The employees must be actively involved in organizational processes of innovation and improvement and for that they should have active participation in decision making processes at various levels through the suggestions given by them and monetary rewards must be offered to them for good practicable suggestions given by them which help the organization in reducing cost and raising organizational productivity.
• Various errands should be there for the employees working in the organization in the form of transportation facilities for to and fro for employees from workplace, crèche, housing and medical facilities, schooling allowances for employees children and facility of gym and also the facility of physical trainer in the organization.
• Organization could also have a facility where people can relax, listen to music, play games outside their normal week hours.

Sometimes employees can be difficult who can present unique challenges for management. Motivating employees who show high absenteeism, low productivity and a lack of enthusiasm is a task which must be handled in a variety of different ways by the management. Every employee is different, and all employees will have their own reasons for acting in this manner in the organization. It is up to human resources and management to determine the cause before enacting a plan to help motivate a person. In many cases, there might be some underlying problem that is prompting the employee’s behavior in the organization.

Step 1

Human resource should schedule a private meeting with the difficult employee. Human resources should conduct it and hold in such a manner that is non-confrontational for both. Thay should keep the environment conducive to open sharing and should get to the bottom of the employee’s behavior. This is particularly holds good if the employee has been motivated in the past and the employee is suddenly showing these signs.

Step 2

Determine if there are some outside issues that are influencing the behavior of the employee. Problems at employee’s house and with other outside factors can play a major role in employee performance. If the employee feels that he cannot focus on his work as he is overwhelmed by a situation at home, the human resource manager can do counseling or suggest programs that may be of use to the employee.

Step 3

Find out if the problem of the employee is work-centric. It may be the case that another employee is harassing the affected employee, or the employee may feel that he is in the dead-end position. Question the employee and find out why he is behaving in this way. Discover on a course of action to improve his overall morale and help right any potential wrongs.

Step 4

Set specific rewards and goals. Humans are goal-oriented and thus, employees often need to be motivated using some reward system. An example of such goal setting is perfect attendance of employees for the month; management can offer them a reward if the targeted employees achieve the goal.

Step 5

Determine if the employee should seek employment elsewhere and the employee simply has a bad attitude. In few cases, there may not be a direct cause for chronic absenteeism and lack of productivity. The person may simply hate his job or workplace and not want to show up. In such case, the only legitimate solution may be to let the employee seek job elsewhere and to let that employee go.

Causes of Low Levels of Productivity

Poor Management

Company’s productivity may be decreased by ineffective management practices in several ways. The overall strategy for such kind of company consists of inefficiencies because the manager does not see and does not take steps to implement the most productive ways to complete tasks in the organization. Individual employees flounder under poor management. They don’t have the coaching and freedom to reach their full potential, so they do not get as much done as they could. Employees who don’t feel like their superiors recognize their efforts often do not try hard to perform to the full capacity of them.

Outdated Systems

Sometimes a company uses clunky and outdated methods to carry out its desired goals, which results negatively as its productivity decreases significantly. For e.g., if one company uses software to automatically track and record data, while another collects it manually, by hand, the productivity of second company will be much lower because the person tracking and collecting data cannot do much else. Companies can increase their productivity by automating and streamlining processes to decrease the work needed to complete tasks by the employees.

Employee Dissatisfaction

Dissatisfied employees are mostly the unproductive employees, while passionate employees who are happy about their jobs get the work done effectively. Human beings have a natural tendency of prioritizing the tasks they like or want to do, so the employee who likes his job will naturally put his job ahead of his other desires, for e.g., chatting with a co-worker, relaxing or getting through the day so he can go home. Getting the right person for the job can lead to a satisfied and happy employee and a productive company.

Employee Personal Problems

In the organization, the employees who experience personal problems show to be low productivity than those who are not experiencing problems similar to them. In particular, poor health and stress both contribute to low levels of productivity and high absenteeism. Companies can provide to the employees on-site counseling to help decrease stress levels and help the employees solve through other personal problems which are hindering productivity. Employees should also be encouraged by companies to take sick time when needed to help them and to coming into the office and getting others sick or to avoid getting a more serious illness.

The employees in an organization are the most valuable asset to the organization. Keeping them motivated and engaged is the key to a successful and highly productive workforce. Some employees produce to their highest capabilities regardless of the incentive given to them, while some employees need an occasional jump-start for work. When handled effectively, the result can be increased employee morale and greater productivity.

Unfortunately, there are many organizations that do not understand how to motivate their employees. Such organizations are under constant pressure to increase profitability, productivity and revenue growth and such organizations often overshadows the significance of how an unengaged workforce can negatively affect organizational performance.

What causes low productivity and high absenteeism among the employees? The reason could be a number of things! Every employee is an individual human being and the things that affect the individual employees negatively in the workplace are unique. The reasons could be poorly matched to the job in workplace in which they don’t have the skills to be successful. Or it could be substance abuse, extreme job dissatisfaction difficulty with a poor manager or poor work ethic. They may be guilty of employee fraud or theft. Whatever the reasons may be, an organization must understand how to identify the root of problem, the root of employee behavior and how it is relating to low productivity so that the organization can establish strategies to improve the organizational climate.

So, how can the management improve productivity in their organization? Now, employee productivity increases can be achieved if it is known that what motivates the employees and by knowing more about the employees. Management must find ways to understand and to find out what are drives each individual employee has within the context of their respective roles in the organization. Each individual employee has a different reason for working. Few employees may be motivated by things like flexible working conditions, an opportunity for a promotion, performance-based bonuses, personal satisfaction or additional paid time off. While, others feel as if they are contributing to something larger than themselves and work to accomplish goals. Whatever may be their reasons, individual employees must find some satisfaction in their work or they may become unproductive and unhappy.

Many organizations use employee assessments to help the employees find ways to motivate employees as individuals. In turn, this provides better results as each employee’s works for a unique and different reason. By using assessments, management is able to find out what motivates employees and also makes employees want to live up to their full potential.

In a workplace, assessments can also be used to match people with the jobs or to the work they do. The essential factors can e measured, that mark the difference in workplace between success and failure in specific jobs, and the organization put the right person into every position or job, allowing them to utilize their talents efficiently without limitations. This leads to improved morale and much greater job satisfaction because the organization is staffed with a workforce of people who are highly skilled, productive and committed to doing their very best.