scholarly journals Antecedents of turnover in federal public administration

2018 ◽  
Vol 53 (3) ◽  
pp. 366-384
Author(s):  
Pedro Cavalcanti G. Ferreira ◽  
Elaine Rabelo Neiva

Purpose Understanding the reasons that lead civil servants to abandon their offices is an important step towards qualifying personnel management in the Federal Administration. The purpose of this study is to present an initial approach to the subject and to investigate variables that favor or reduce the turnover intention among civil servants in the Federal Executive Branch. Design/methodology/approach To fulfill the objective stated, the study resorted to variables of values, expectations and affective commitment to the organization. Variables were tested in a model of structural equations capable of verifying if these are antecedent or not of the turnover intention levels in a sample comprising 228 civil servants. Findings The validation of a model of structural equations unveiled a statistically relevant relation of dependence among values, expectations and the affective commitment to the organization. Moreover, engagement proved to be a mediator of the relation between the other variables and the turnover intention. Originality/value The work contributed to literature by presenting evidence that low expectations among civil servants bring low affective commitment which, in turn, leads to higher willingness to quit organizations. On the other hand, the same model showed that self-transcendent values, typical to the public career (serve the public), prevail among civil servants and positively impact commitment. This scenario shows that in people management all these elements of values and expectations must be worked on to reduce the number of civil servants that quit the government every year, as well as the high costs associated with quitting.

2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 770-786 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chunkui Zhu ◽  
Chen Wu

Purpose This paper aims to examine different hypotheses concerning the effects of public service motivation (PSM) and other attitudinal or institutional dimensions on organizational performance (OP). Specifically, based on the experience of Chinese provincial governments, this study provides new evidence about how PSM may affect OP. Design/methodology/approach This study collected data from a survey of different provincial government departments in Sichuan Province, Hubei Province, Hunan Province and Chongqing Municipality in 2011. Using data from 761 respondents, Pearson correlation analysis and regression analysis were used to explore the relationships between related factors. Findings PSM, job satisfaction, affective commitment and job involvement have statistically significant effects on OP, and these results are consistent with the findings of previous researches that PSM positively affected OP at a significant level. The results suggest that, if civil servants have a strong PSM, the performance of their organizations will be high. Research limitations/implications Future research should look for additional factors that affect OP, comparing employees’ perceptions of an organization’s performance with objective data to determine whether, and to what degree, subjective measures of performance are valid measures of OP in the public sector. Practical implications In the process of improving government performance, it is significant to give attention to the government employees’ mentality. The government training and promotion system should encourage civil servants to care about the public interest. A more flattened organization should be considered as part of the next steps in government reform, and more opportunities should be provided to involve more government employees in policy making. Originality/value This study helps to clarify the effects of individual factors of PSM on OP in China in a tightly controlled bureaucratic environment, where related data are hardly accessible.


Subject Outlook for civil service reform in Myanmar. Significance On April 21, the government confirmed that permanent secretaries, abolished in 1962, will be reintroduced into the public administration system. The decision is part of President Thein Sein's "third wave" of reforms, following commensurate political and economic measures after the 2010 elections and Myanmar's transition to semi-civilian government. By restoring this most-senior bureaucratic post, Naypyidaw intends to enhance the bureaucracy and signal its intention to modernise public administration. Impacts Further civil service reform will require the government to define the centre-province administrative balance. Until then, civil service reforms may initially be felt in urban centres only. Additional pay may be required for civil servants.


2019 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 38-53
Author(s):  
Lucia B. Oliveira ◽  
Elson Mário Toja Couto Monteiro da Costa

Purpose The purpose of this study was to compare and analyze the job satisfaction, organizational commitment and turnover intention of professors, technical-administrative servants and outsourced workers of the Federal University of the State of Rio de Janeiro (UNIRIO). Design/methodology/approach The authors conducted analyses of variance, with the multiple comparisons made using Tukey’s post hoc tests, as well as regression analyses. The sample of 297 workers included 115 faculty members, 86 technical-administrative servants and 96 outsourced employees. Findings The results showed that the job satisfaction of outsourced workers was significantly higher than that of the public servants. On the other hand, professors presented the highest level of affective commitment, significantly higher than technical-administrative employees and outsourced workers. Turnover intention of outsourced workers was lower than that of technical-administrative employees, despite the stability of the latter group. Practical implications From a practical standpoint, the results may guide the development human resource management policies and practices aligned with the reality and the needs of public servants and outsourced employees, thus fostering their job satisfaction, commitment and retention. Originality/value This study is relevant given the increased use of outsourced labor in the public administration and the relative paucity of empirical studies with this group of workers, as evidenced by the review of the national literature. Moreover, as the theme of outsourcing is quite controversial, the authors hope this new evidence contributes to the debate.


2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 88-102
Author(s):  
Sajeev Abraham George ◽  
Anurag C. Tumma

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to benchmark the operational and financial performances of the major Indian seaports to help derive useful insights to improve their performance. Design/methodology/approach A two-stage data envelopment analysis (DEA) methodology has been used with the help of data collected on the 13 major seaports of India. The first stage of the DEA captured the operational efficiencies, while the second stage the financial performance. Findings A window analysis over a period of three years revealed that no port was able to score an overall average efficiency of 100 per cent. The study identified the better performing units among their peers in both the stages. The contrasting results of the study with the traditional operational and financial performance measures used by the ports helped to derive useful insights. Research limitations/implications The data used in the study were majorly limited to the available sources in the public domain. Also, the study was limited to the major seaports which are under the Government of India and no comparisons were carried out with other local or international ports. Practical implications There is a need to prioritize investments and improvement efforts where they are most needed, instead of following a generalized approach. Once the benchmark ports are identified, the port authorities and other relevant stakeholders should work in detail on the factors causing inefficiencies, for possible improvements in performance. Originality/value This paper carried out a two-stage DEA that helped to derive useful insights on operational efficiency and financial performance of the India seaports. A combination of the financial and operational parameters, along with a comparison of the DEA results with the traditional measures, provided a different perspective on the Indian seaport performance. Considering the scarcity of research papers reported in the literature on DEA-based benchmarking studies of seaports in the Indian context, it has the potential to attract future research in this field.


2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 41-54 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Joyce

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyse the 2016 elections for Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) and to compare them with those that took place in 2012. It seeks to evaluate the background of the candidates who stood for office in 2016, the policies that they put forward, the results of the contests and the implications of the 2016 experience for future PCC elections. Design/methodology/approach This paper is based around several key themes – the profile of candidates who stood for election, preparations conducted prior to the contests taking place, the election campaign and issues raised during the contests, the results and the profile of elected candidates. The paper is based upon documentary research, making particular use of primary source material. Findings The research establishes that affiliation to a political party became the main route for successful candidates in 2016 and that local issues related to low-level criminality will dominate the future policing agenda. It establishes that although turnout was higher than in 2012, it remains low and that further consideration needs to be devoted to initiatives to address this for future PCC election contests. Research limitations/implications The research focusses on the 2016 elections and identifies a number of key issues that emerged during the campaign affecting the conduct of the contests which have a bearing on future PCC elections. It treats these elections as a bespoke topic and does not seek to place them within the broader context of the development of the office of PCC. Practical implications The research suggests that in order to boost voter participation in future PCC election contests, PCCs need to consider further means to advertise the importance of the role they perform and that the government should play a larger financial role in funding publicity for these elections and consider changing the method of election. Social implications The rationale for introducing PCCs was to empower the public in each police force area. However, issues that include the enhanced importance of political affiliation as a criteria for election in 2016 and the social unrepresentative nature of those who stood for election and those who secured election to this office in these contests coupled with shortcomings related to public awareness of both the role of PCCs and the timing of election contests threaten to undermine this objective. Originality/value The extensive use of primary source material ensures that the subject matter is original and its interpretation is informed by an academic perspective.


2016 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 642-656 ◽  
Author(s):  
Violet T. Ho ◽  
Amanuel G. Tekleab

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to disentangle the relationship between the request of idiosyncratic deals (i-deals) and the receipt of such deals, and investigate the moderating roles of human capital (gender and industry experience) and social capital (leader-member exchange (LMX)) in this relationship. Attitudinal outcomes of i-deals receipt are also examined. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected from 244 alumni of a Midwestern public university. Findings – The positive relationship between i-deals request and receipt was stronger at higher than at lower levels of LMX. Receiving i-deals was related positively to job satisfaction and affective commitment, and negatively to turnover intention. Research limitations/implications – The authors provide a nuanced perspective of i-deals by separating employees’ request from their receipt of i-deals, and identifying contingent factors that determine whether i-deal requests are successful. Practical implications – For employees, cultivating a strong relationship with one’s supervisor can yield benefits that extend to i-deals negotiation. Providing i-deals to deserving workers can boost employees’ work attitudes. Originality/value – Previous studies have operationalized the i-deals construct as requesting and receiving the deal, thereby excluding the possibility that employees may have requested but did not receive the i-deal. This is one of the first studies to disentangle these two concepts, thereby providing a more balanced and representative view of i-deal-making in organizations.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ebrahim Rezaei

PurposeThis paper aims to disclose the savings behavior of Iran's economy in the context of demographic transition.Design/methodology/approachEmploying a version of Ramsey-Cass-Koopmans growth model, this paper benefits from a broad range of data and variables which are mainly taken from the Central Bank of Iran's database. The study uses actual and calculated data to produce analogous simulated data. The data cover the 1970–2015 period. This long period provides an opportunity to simulate more valid time series. It is worth noting that due to the severe economic sanctions imposed on the Iran's economy, particularly after 2017, some most recent data have been obliterated from the sample.FindingsThe results, stemming from the simulated model, hint that; firstly, the population variable is a notable determinant of the savings rate. Secondly, the effects of a slump in the population growth rate would attenuate the savings level significantly. Thirdly, other pragmatic steps could be taken to redress the fallout of the demographic changes.Research limitations/implicationsThere are some limitations in providing broad data related to economic sectors in Iran. The savings data, for instance, are available as an aggregated time series, and if the authors had wide data of household level, they would have been able to build more detail-based model. Similar to this issue of lack of households’ income-based data, some measures such as high or low levels as well as detailed demographic data could be helpful in sophisticated household level resulting. In addition, the complex relationship between the government and social security (pension) funds, in terms of financing part of government's budget deficit by these funds, thwarts a typical researcher in using comprehensive and transparent government expenditure data in their research. In other words, the possible positive or negative role of the funds, as a related issue to the demographic changes, cannot simply be determined in the model. It might be possible after necessary corrections are carried out in the mentioned relations.Originality/valueIn fact, the problem statement in this paper is to discern how the population aging can impact the saving rates on the one hand, and to what extent its repercussion can be modified by the other theoretical-based determinants on the other. In fact, the underlying argument of the present research arises from the stylized facts concerning prognosticates of the future evolutions of the world's population. To that end, the study will use Iran's economic and demographic data.


2017 ◽  
Vol 38 (7) ◽  
pp. 912-926 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinuk Oh ◽  
Semi Oh

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to address two of the ongoing theoretical and empirical questions in the literature on authentic leadership: does authentic leadership negatively influence employees’ turnover intentions by enhancing their levels of affective commitment? and does organizational size act as a boundary condition for the mediating effects of affective commitment in the link between authentic leadership and turnover intentions? Design/methodology/approach A moderated mediation model of the affective process linking authentic leadership and turnover intentions was developed and tested on a sample of 375 employees working in South Korean firms. Findings The negative indirect effects of authentic leadership on employees’ turnover intentions through changes in the levels of affective commitment were significant. Furthermore, the mediated relationship between authentic leadership and turnover intentions via employees’ levels of affective commitment was stronger in smaller organizations. Practical implications The findings of the present study may be useful to practitioners who are interested in employee retention. They can mitigate against turnover intentions by enhancing the authentic leadership qualities of the managers. More specifically, this approach is especially ideal for small organizations. Originality/value This study corroborates the results of previous studies in highlighting the pervasive effects of authentic leadership on turnover intentions via enhancing employees’ levels of affective commitment. Moreover, organizational size as a boundary condition for the aforementioned relationship was empirically examined.


2014 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 321-340 ◽  
Author(s):  
Long W. Lam ◽  
Yan Liu

Purpose – Drawing on social identity and self-categorization theories and building on Meyer and Herscovitch's (2001) work on affective commitment, this study aimed to examine the relationship between organizational identification and affective commitment, and the relationships between these two variables and employees' attitude and behavior. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected on-site from 158 automobile dealership employees in central China. Regression analysis and hierarchical linear modeling were used to analyze the survey data. Findings – Organizational identification was positively related to affective commitment. Affective commitment was negatively related to turnover intention and positively related to job performance. Affective commitment mediated the relationship between organizational identification and turnover intention, but did not mediate the relationship between organizational identification and job performance. Research limitations/implications – This study contributes to the literature by integrating organizational identification and affective commitment, the two distinct types of employees' organizational attachment. However, results should be cautioned with the limitations of the study. Practical implications – Managers can use employees' organizational identification to foster affective commitment since it leads to a variety of positive work attitudes and behavior. Social implications – Society as a whole may benefit by having more loyal and committed workforce in organisations. Originality/value – This study develops a model that aligns employee commitment and identification. Doing so answers the call for more efforts to integrate the two forms of organizational attachment in order to make more progress in this line of research.


2015 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-204 ◽  
Author(s):  
Phuong Nguyen ◽  
Jörg Felfe ◽  
Insa Fooken ◽  
Ho Thuy Ngoc

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the nature of commitments of local employees to a parent company and a local operation in comparison to the nature of commitment of Western expatriates to the two foci. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected by questionnaire from 532 local employees and 471 Western expatriates currently working for the subsidiaries of multinational companies (MNCs) in Vietnam. Hypotheses were tested using exploratory factor analyses, confirmatory factor analyses, correlation analyses, t-test, generalized linear models and hierarchical regression. Findings – The results confirmed two distinct commitment foci and revealed that the commitment to the local operation was stronger than the commitment to the parent company for local employees. Remarkably, retention and absenteeism are more driven by local operation commitment than by parent company commitment for the local employees. In contrast, these outcomes are more driven by parent company commitment for the Western expatriates. Working conditions (job autonomy, job variety, transformational leadership and remuneration) positively predicted affective commitment to the local operation for both groups; particularly job variety and leadership were better predictors for local employees than for Western expatriates. Practical implications – The comparison shows effective and specific ways to sustain and reinforce the commitments of each employee group with regard to two foci. This information may help to reduce the rate of turnover intention and absenteeism in MNCs. Originality/value – By using a multifaceted approach, this study provided a comparison of dual organizational commitment for different categories of employees working in MNCs. Second, this study shows that the stronger commitment focus has a stronger influence on related outcomes (i.e. retention and absenteeism). If so, MNCs can focus on reinforcing the selected commitment focus in order to reduce the costs of management. Third, the study has initially pointed out that some work factors exert a specific influence on different commitment foci in the two groups. Controlling these work conditions is recommended to sustain and develop commitment levels of the two groups.


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