Motivation of Workers

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Motivation of Workers

Having a motivated workforce is vital for most businesses, since it

can lead to higher rates of productivity, better quality output, and

low rates of absenteeism and labour turnover.

The main factors which affect the motivation of workers are pay

levels, job security, promotional prospects, being given

responsibilities, working conditions, fringe benefits, participation

in decision-making and working in a team.

Motivational Theories

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There are two basic theories of motivation; content theories and

process theories. Content theories focus on what actually motivates

people, they study the needs that must be satisfied in order for the

employee to be motivated.

The need is either satisfied by an extrinsic reward (e.g. pay) or an

intrinsic reward (e.g. recognition and praise). The Classical (Fayol),

the Scientific (Taylor), the Human Relations (Mayo), and the Neo-Human

Relations (Maslow, Herzberg, McGregor) schools of management thought

are all content theories.

Process theories, do not concern the needs which must be satisfied in

order to achieve motivation, but instead they are concerned with the

thought-processes that influence workers’ behaviour. There are two

such theories:

Expectancy theory:

This states that workers will only act when they have a reasonable

expectation that their work will lead to the desired outcome. If they

believe that they possess the ability and skill to achieve the goal,

then their level of effort will be great and they will be motivated.

Equity theory:

This states that each worker will wish to receive a remuneration

packag...

... middle of paper ...

...lieve that they can

slow down the decision-making process, as well as ‘leaking’

confidential information to employees.

Symptoms of poor motivation amongst the workforce include high rates

of absenteeism and labour turnover, poor timekeeping, high rates of

waste, low quality output and an increasing number of disciplinary

problems.

When a poor level of motivation exists in a workforce, then the

management should:

a) Develop a strong corporate culture and team-spirit.

b) Ensure that pay levels are fair.

c) Design more challenging jobs.

d) Introduce decision-making at lower levels in the organisation.

e) Give praise and recognition to employees for their efforts and

achievements.

f) Ensure that communication flows are effective and that the relevant

messages get to the relevant personnel.

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