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THE EFFECTS OF STAFF WELFARE SCHEME ON EMPLOYEE PRODUCTIVITY

ABSTRACT

The Nigerian Local Government system has been fraught with a lot of problems since its inception in the colonial days. This is informed due to the various reforms that has been carried out by successive governments both at colonial and post impendence era. Despite these reform the Local Government has been characterized by low productivity corruption ineptitude and low morale to work. The Surulere Local Government Council is not an exception. Motivation of staff is a pivot to productivity of nay organization. Therefore, it becomes necessary to motivate workers to enable them work assiduously towards the goals and objectives of the organization. Ovation may not necessary be monetary compensation but also favourable condition of service which may not be quantified in terms of monetary value for the staff. During the research, it was observed that there is deficiency of studies on motivation and productivity in respect of Public Service organization. This shortage may be explained by the fact that Public Service has been viewed to be an organization that cannot be productive. The propose of concentrating  on staff welfare scheme as a motivating tool for productivity in the Local Government is justified by the fact that a good staff welfare package would attract good caliber of workers to such organization thereby enhancing its productivity. 

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY    

Human resources is easily recognized as the most important of the resources required for the production of good and services. It is the key to rapid social economic development and efficient services delivery. Without adequately, skilled and well motivated work force operating within a sound human resources management programme, productivity will be slow and development not possible. A civil service that underrates this crucial role and underplays the importance of people in goal achievement can neither be effective nor productive (Ndiomu 1999:6). It is a universally altruism that there is a correlation between motivated employee and productivity. It goes to say that organization with highly motivated manpower has the potentials for high productivity while organization with manpower that is de-motivated tends to affects its productivity. It is obvious, therefore that there can be no productivity without manpower with job satisfaction and development as motivating factors.        

In other words job enrichment and enlargement in any organization are concerned with the quality of work life. This involves the provision of a conductive environment free from physical harm, adverse psychological effects stress, burnout, etc. Results therefore will depend on the establishment for the full development of people. Therefore there is an interface between the motivated employees and the salary fringe benefits and super annulations on the one hand and productivity has become necessary to enhance it, so that employees are encouraged to identify with and be committed to the objective of the organization. (Asieegbu 1991:148). It is interesting to note that in the productive work force of any nation, those who have innate interest in the work they do and takes, pride in being able to do that work well and in a minimum amount of time, without urging from others to conduct themselves in an efficient manner are always very few. Such employees constitute a very small proportion of the workforce of any organization. Therefore, the bulk of its employees must be induced to minimize avoidable delays to adhere to prescribed methods of work and maintain satisfactory pace (Mullins 1999:).

Since irrespective of its capital know how, an organization depends (for its success on its human resources. The more satisfied  the employees are and the more readily the organization identifies and satisfies the employees needs, the more willing the employees are to put in efforts that get the job done (Ajileye 1999: 153). The need for good motivation package as a way of securing and retaining competent workers in the Civil service had always reflected in the reports of the various commission set up to update police: and practices of Public Service personnel in Nigeria (Harigis (1946) Gorsuch 1955, Mbanefo (1959) Morgan (1954) Elwood (1966) Adebo 91971) and Udoji (1974).                                            

The relationship between organization and its member is governed by what motivates them to work and fulfilment they derive from it. The local government commission needs to know how best to elicit the cooperation of staff and direct their performance to achieving the goals and objective of the local government. The chairman must understand the nature of human behaviour and how best to motivate staff as that they can work willingly and effectively (Mullins Ibdi). The productivity (efficiency) and effectiveness of civil Service personnel whether federal, State or local government has always been the subejct6 of discussion, particularly when comparing it with the private sector. Along this argument the Civil service has received more battered. This is not unconnected with the various reforms since 1976 till date. Every government has been concerned with the low performance of the local government personnel.                        

The essence of those reforms is to reduce absenteeism and tardiness, increase the quality of output reduce the occurrence of avoidable delays in achieving their set goals and objectives, reduce corruption amongst others. Therefore in achieving these laudable objectives more especially in the local government, the  present Obasanjo administration led reform (July, 2003) should consider the personnel below average performance level against the backdrop of other vital resources available to the local government personnel i.e office accommodation, materials and equipment especially technological support viz-a-viz social welfare scheme available to them.

It is not uncommon to find two senior management staff say grade level 13 officers sharing a small room so small that they would be breathing directly into each other’s noses. An expectation of high level of performance under such condition would be unattainable. The situation as regards the availability of materials and simple technological machines like the computer, telephones which could facilitate and enhances performance in even much more must not be neglected by the local Government Commission. The situation of housing and transportation in a city like Lagos is very hazardous and precarious. What effort has the local government management made to ameliorate the suffering of their staff in Lagos State. Nevertheless, this research work is based on the Surulere Local Government personnel’s and the aspect of motivation which we seek to address is the non financial aspect. This is the provision of social welfare packages and fringe benefits as a pivot for productivity.     

1.2   STATEMENT OF PROBLEM 

Local Government system in Nigeria dates backs to the British colonial authority and this was inherited by a sovereign Nigeria state in October 1960. Since inception, the local government system as been fraught with inefficiency and ineffectiveness. To buttress this is the avalanche of reforms since independence that have taken place all in view to reposition local government in the administration of the grassroots Dasuki (1976) and Ndayako (2003). The expectation was that the third tier of government would act as a catalyst of rapid and sustainable development but what have been seen is a unworkable local government characterized by corruption, efficiency and unproductiveness since the 1976 reforms.                

The creation of more local government by previous governments in Nigeria to ameliorate these problems has not help matters. At the root of this instability and unproductiveness, however, is the fact that Nigeria itself has been undergoing rapid socio-economic development which ahs require the building of new forms of organizations that will face the challenges that tray its path.  Form the interrogation of historical context, and nature of the problems of local government in Nigeria a number of point have emerged. One is that the system of local government has been highly experimental and unstable (Guardian 2003:74). In the post independence period the system has been subjected to reforms and several models have been experimented with ostensibly in the search for efficiency and effective form of local government.

The Nigerian local government system is also facing acute financial crisis despite the receipt of 20 percent and 35 percent from the federation account and Vat respectively . Majority of industrial conflicts in local government today boarders on unpaid salary and fringe benefits and lack of adequate inceptive. This projects is led to investigate the fundamental question of work value in Local Government Work has lost its challenges to many workers at the local government level since there is non-availability of funds to take care of their needs. In the face of this, how can we talk about productivity when the local government cannot motivate its workers to work? Consequently the following research questions are pertinent guide for the study.

What are the various motivation techniques? How effective are this instrument of productivity in local government?

How can local government work force as a non-profit organization can be productive?                        

What would the government do to make career in local government service is attractive?

How can the staff of the local government be made productive like their counterpart in private organizations?

1.3  OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The specific objectives of this research work are as follows:

· To identify the factors that causes low productivity in Surulere local government.

· To highlight the consequences and implication of a due motivated staff to social and economic development of Surulere Local Government   

· To suggest the importance of Staff welfare scheme to productivity.

· To suggest practice measures on how to improve on the staff welfare, if need be, of the personnel of the Surulere local government council.   

1.4  HYPOTHESES FORMULATION 

In line with the research questions raised above the following hypotheses are formulated.

The more motive a worker is the more productive an organization is.

The more job satisfaction a workforce gets the more productive it becomes.      

The more focused the goals and objectives of an organization the more the workforce will  achieve its goals. 

1.5 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY 

Since the information available on government activities is always scanty and fragmentary it may be difficult and at times, even unfair, to draw general conclusions. In the first place, there is no plan setting out in clear terms the objectives and goals to be achieved by Surulere local government. Secondly there are some problems regarding the laying down of standards of government activities against which actual performance is to be measured and compare. Thirdly it has not been easily to collect data from government organizations and other related agencies operating in the same locality and providing service of similar nature, so as to give an indication of relative efficiency and effectiveness of different service agencies. Views expressed here would therefore be regarded as suffering from these basic constraints and imperfections.          

1.6 JUSTIFICATION OF STUDY 

There is no doubt that the reforms of local government system currently going on the Obasanjo led administration is due  to the inefficiency and ineffectiveness of actualizing its goals and objectives as a third tier government. The gravity of they situation could be seen from the huge resources so far pumped into the local government system (20 percent and 35 percent from the  federation account  and VAT respectively) and the mal-administration at the grass root level where corruption and ineptitude by workers have become the order of the day. The consequences of all these on the national political life is certainly grievous.

In a development country like Nigeria, which is seriously searching for economic growth and development allowing the workforce demolished due to non payment  of salary and compensation in the local government system, would likely not only make it difficult to get out of the conditions of underdevelopment but also hinder the attainment of the much cherished stable polity that can allow for the development of the grass roots the absence of concise study of the problem of  unproductively in local government service which could provide appropriating ground for a policy design and a possible invention programme is a matter of concern. Here lies the significance of this study and it justification, which is basically to generate knowledge in this problem area and attempt to proffer solutions.

1.7  SCOPE /SETTING OF STUDY

The study is on the Surulere local government in Lagos State. Lagos State alone accommodates over 5% of Nigeria’s total population of over 120 million and its very rapid growth in a mega city like Lagos in the last three decades become interesting for any social research. There are twenty local government areas in Lagos as a September, 2003. One of the local government is Surulere local government. Surulere local government was created on 27th  August 1992, it was carved out of the Mainland local government Notable area of the local government area are, Ojuelegba, Lawson, Ijnesha, Bode Thomas. Orile, Igammu industrial layout and Adeniran Ogunsanya. The council also houses federal and state housing estates at Iponri and Lawson which provides accommodation for both the upper and middle class.

1.8 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY  

The research methodology that will be sued are both the primary and secondary data. The primary data will be sourced through questionnaires would be distributed amongst the work force of Surulere local government. The distribution will be among the six departments Administration Health; Finance and Planning, Information and Engineering. Also interview will be conducted amongst some senior management officers from grade level ten (10) and above. The quantitative techniques to be adopted is the simple percentage analysis., using the programme and performance budgeting system (P.P.B.S)   While the secondary data will be based on content analysis of text, journals, magazines and New Papers comments in relation to local government system in Nigeria.

1.9  THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 

There are many competing theories which attempts to exampling the nature of motivation. These theories are all at least partially true, and all help to explain the behaviour of certain people at certain times. However, the search for a generalized theory of motivation at work place appear to be elusive (Mullins Ibid: 414). Handy (1993:16) suggest that the search for definitive solution to the motivation problems is another endless quest for the Holy Grial in or organization theory. It is because of the complexity of motivation and the fait that there is no ready made solution or single answer to what motivates people to work well that the different theories are important to the manager (Mullins Ibid) they shows there which influences people’s behaviour and performance. Collectively, the different theories provide a framework within which to direct attention to problem of how best to motivate staff work willingly and effectively.

Nevertheless these study is based on professor Abraham Maslow  (1954) motivation theory. To him, man’s need are hierarchical. First there ware physiological needs; there are need for safety and protection’s third there are need for companionship affection, and love relationships in the family, work group and community, forth these are needs for respect, social standing and esteem as gained through achievement and through recognition by others; Fifth, there are needs for self actualization which is the filament of one’s potentialities. According to Maslow, there is no line of demarcation between each level of needs but generally, when a man gratifies the first level of needs, the second level becomes more important to him, and so on, Abraham Maslow accepted the fact that his theory of hierarchy of needs may not be valid for person with different.    

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