Do Attitudes towards Work or Work Motivation Affect Productivity Loss among Academic Employees?

Work motivation and job attitudes are important for productivity levels among academic employees. In situations where employees perceive problems, for example, health-related and work environment-related problems, the ability to perform at work could be affected, which may result in fewer publications, reduced quality and less research funding. Few studies, however, have paid attention to productivity loss among academic employees in order to understand how, or if, the perceived loss is affected by the reported problems, either alone or in combination with work motivation and job attitudes. To evaluate whether attitudes towards work—measured as job satisfaction, organisational commitment and work motivation—are associated with productivity loss in the workplace, a cross-sectional study was conducted. This type of design is required as performance is highly variable and is affected by changes in health and work status. This study includes employees who reported either health-related problems, work environment problems or a combination of both (n = 1475). Linear regression analyses were used to answer the hypotheses. Higher levels of motivation, job satisfaction and organisational commitment were associated with lower levels of productivity loss among employees who experienced either health-related or work environment problems. High work motivation and high commitment were significantly associated with lower levels of productivity loss among employees who experienced a combination of problems. In summary, productivity loss among academic employees is not only affected by health-related problems or problems in the work environment but also by work motivation, job satisfaction and organisational commitment; i.e., these factors seem to buffer, or moderate, the reduction in performance levels for this group of employees.

Assessing the effect of organisational commitment on turnover intentions amongst Islamic bank employees

PurposeThe research aims to test the links amongst Meyer and Allen's three levels of organisational commitment and the commitment's effect on reducing turnover intentions for Islamic bank (IB) employees during the lockdown caused by coronavirus disease (COVID-19).Design/methodology/approachThe research follows a variable-centred approach. Primary data are collected through a survey of 324 respondents comprising IB employees from three Arab countries, notably the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Lebanon and Oman. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and Cronbach's alpha test are conducted to test the construct validity, reliability and internal consistency of collected data. Descriptive statistics are used to interpret the data. Zero-order correlations, multiple regression analysis and Fisher's Z-test are applied to assess the interrelations of the various groups of variables and the determinants of turnover intentions.FindingsResults show that there is a high level of significant intercorrelation amongst affective, normative and continuance commitments as well as amongst organisational commitment, individual differences and turnover intentions for IB employees from the three studied Arab countries. The results confirmed that turnover intentions are minimised in the presence of all three organisational commitment subscales and that individual differences amongst IB employees and organisational efficiency moderate the relationship between organisational commitment and turnover intentions.Originality/valueThere is no empirical work that has been done on the determinants of turnover intentions amongst IB employees during the lockdown. This is valuable to organisational behaviour scholars and practitioners who are interested in the role that organisational commitment plays in IB's employment behaviour.

Antecedents and Consequences of Job Embeddedness in the Egyptian Hospitality Context

Although there are a growing body of studies on the influence of job embeddedness on turnover intention, few researches have been conducted on the drivers and outcomes of job embeddedness. Thus, this paper seeks to examine the drivers and outcomes of job embeddedness in the Egyptian hotels context. Data were collected from employees in the Egyptian hotels. Structural equation modelling was used to analyse the data. The results indicated that organisational support, employee advocacy, organisational rewards, and procedural justice are key drivers of job embeddedness. Furthermore, job embeddedness is related to organisational commitment and turnover intention. This study provides implications for the hospitality industry.

Impact of flexible work arrangements on employees’ perceived productivity, organisational commitment and perceived work quality: a United Arab Emirates case-study

Purpose This study aims to examine the impact of flexible work arrangements (FWAs) on employees’ perceived productivity, quality of work and organisational commitment (OC) with a special focus on the United Arab Emirates. It also analyses the mediating effect of employee happiness on the relationship between FWA and employees’ perceived productivity, OC and perceived work quality. Design/methodology/approach A quantitative, non-experimental correlational study was used for this research project. The study yielded numerical data, which were analysed using a deductive approach. The analysis aimed at exploring the relationships between the constructs, which were viewed as variables; these relationships were considered correlations, mediation and moderation. The sample comprises employees currently working at different public and private sector organisations, representing all major service industries in the UAE. Nine questions were used to assess the flexibility at work and six out of the nine questions were used to measure the level of FWAs using the Likert scale. Findings FWA has a significant and positive association with the employees’ perceived productivity, quality of work and OC. It was confirmed that happiness plays a mediating role in the relationship between FWA and employee outcomes. The facility allows employees to manage their personal and professional lives with ease using their preferred work method. This ability promotes employee satisfaction. In conclusion, managers and employees around the world should view FWAs as a positive tool to enhance employee productivity and OC, particularly in an emergency like the Covid-19 pandemic. Research limitations/implications The participants’ honesty was a limitation, which could raise questions on the validity of this study. This limitation arises when the self-report method is used for data collection. Use of multiple instruments could be another limitation. Practical implications Organisational leaders can use FWAs to improve employee outcomes. When an organisation grants flexible work options to employees, it implies that the organisation trusts its employees to complete the task. This factor motivates all employees to work with dedication, which is particularly true if the employees are creative people and wish to work on their preferred time and place. Originality/value This study is significant because the findings will allow managers to assess the benefits of using FWAs to improve employee productivity, particularly in the service sector. It combines the aspects of perceived productivity, OC and perceived work quality, as well as employee happiness to assess the role of FWAs in organisations. The study also investigates the influence of FWAs in improving these employee outcomes. Based on the literature review, this study on FWAs is the first of its kind in the UAE, the country using a truly multinational workforce coming from more than 100 countries and cultures.

Technostress and its impact on job satisfaction: Evidences during COVID-19 pandemic among faculty members in higher education in Karnataka

Teachers in schools, colleges, and universities have utilized Information and Communication Technology (ICT) based learning and teaching in the present COVID-19 pandemic situation. Teachers, students, and all other stakeholders have been stressed as a result of this abrupt paradigm shift in education. In recent years, teaching has become a difficult job (Saras, 2018), Instructors are expected to quickly adapt and incorporate technological innovations into their teaching while also participating in administrative and other academic activities, all of which contribute to occupational stress among teachers. Competition has crept into the education industry in this dynamic climate. Faculty today serves in a variety of positions in addition to instructing students, such as mentor, coach, consultant, administrator, researcher, and so on. He or she is required to devote more time and effort to the institutions to meet the demands of an ever-changing academic environment. This study attempted to study the influence of personal variables like gender, course and tenure on technostress. The results found that the personal characteristics had no significant impact on technostress in a sample of 84technical and non-technical faculty members. Further, technostress did not show to have any impact on job satisfaction and organisational commitment; indicating a need for a more comprehensive further study.