1.1 Introduction
Work Environment is one of the most important components which influence employee performance within an organizational setting. In today’s competitive business environment, monetary benefit a alone are not enough for employees in order achieve higher performance levels. Employees are working in insecure and unhealthy environment pretentious occupational disease due to the negative influences of the environment on their performance, which affects the overall productivity of the organization (Chandrasekar, 2011). However, a combination of monetary and nonmonetary rewards is more effective in achieving higher levels of employee performance, which leads towards achievement of organizational goals.
As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Research hypothesis and questions, Limitation of the study and Definition of terms.
1.2 Background of Study
Human effort in organization is indispensable. It constitutes a complex phenomenon to managers of such organization to comprehend. Accordingly, it is believed that every behaviour is a goal directed. Thus, for an organization or individual to engage in any productive venture, it must have underlying fundamental factors including the individual in that direction. Hence the effect of work environment in achieving set target for the organization must be in adequate condition. However, the organizational target can only be achieved if the environment is conducive.
Work environment consists of the office buildings, its furniture and layout as well as the physical conditions under which workers operate. it is also concerned with the external factors to the business which the office serves, the industry or other activities within which the business lies, the custom and laws of the community within which they operates. Office and work environment are dynamic, but the most dynamic factors in the office is human factor. Workers today are more educated than before. They are more likely to raise questions about their environment of work since management itself dynamic pro. It has adhered and addresses itself to the provision of good environment of work for workers productivity.
However, poor work environment and bad conditions have posed a great danger to workers health and therefore make them to work with less joy and enthusiasms and work progress is hampered and disrupted. An understanding of the effect of work environment on the productivity of employees cannot be over-emphasized or seen as overstatement in every organization.
Experience has shown that workers are directly influenced by the environment they find themselves or were their competence will achieve nothing in terms of productivity if the environment is not conducive. This is in line saying in respect of workers in public enterprises today specially those in Delta Line and his issue of unproductive nature of workers is compounded with the poor nature of the environment. Therefore, because of the adverse effect of work environment on morale of employees, the need for provision of good physical work environment for workers was stated by Mill in 1930 after the First World War.
During this period, various management were concerned with the importance of maintaining loyalty and morale through the elimination of irritants such as temperatures, noise and pollution from their environment. This was later spread out to include a wider area of disturbing influences like feeling of insecurity in relation to employment, unfairness on the part of supervision and not being accepted by one’s fellow employees.
The efficiency of office employees is directly or indirectly affected by the conditions under which they are required to do their work which affect the performances of workers and the achievement of organizational objectives for this purpose, this study will focus its attention on the impact of poor Work Environment on the job performance of office workers in the Ministry of Work in an organization.
An organizational management should look into work motivation and conducive environment as antidote for enhancing productivity and influences the amount of work interest and happiness of workers. The Work Environment are consisted of office building, furniture and layout, lighting, good ventilation, color decoration, sound and physical conditioning in which workers operate under a safety measure.
Therefore, in Nigeria where the research was carried out, the activities that was conducted is to know the Effect of Work Environment on Employee Productivity.
1.3 Statement of Problems
Investigation revealed that every organization is set up for a purpose and such purpose which is generally referred to as the objective and this cannot be achieved if the environment looks unhealthy. The absence of important of work material as a result of non availability of some necessary office facilities like air condition, rug, good ventilation in some of the department in the company is a common feature. Some office or department looks depressing and un-stimulating. Some of them have no louvers, light and some with uncompleted roofs.
The state of affairs do not compete favorable with other office outside, some office with dirty and scattered environment, most of the departments has small floor space with materials tables, chairs, papers, files and other things scattered here and there. Some office were furnished without due regard to the relationship between colour selection and workers morale. Some of these facilities has colour which makes the office to be dark; in some of the department’s work service are wrongly arranged. It is known from workers view point that the work of accounting typing etc needs good quality of light because of visual discrimination involved. As a result of non availability of good work environment, the performance of employees is in a declining state.
Most departmental manager in the company pay no attention in accomplishing the departmental set objectives, as to be recognized and promoted at the expense of workers or employees welfare. These acts of negligence by the mangers have gone a long way to reduce workers performance or morale. The state of affairs in the company has resulted to negative attitude by the employees which is inimical to the progress and accomplishment of the company’s set objective with an attempt to answer the questions in the research work.
1.4 Aim and Objectives of Study
The aim of the study is to examine the effect of work environment on employee productivity using Delta Line as a case study. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:
- To determine whether the nature of work environment lead to low productivity, absenteeism and lateness among employees.
- To ascertain whether inadequacy of the various conditional factors can affect productivity of employee;
- To investigate the level of productivity of workers under healthy environment; and
- To suggest strategies for enhancing the productivity of workers in the company.
Hence, the specific objectives of Delta Line are stated as follows: to create job opportunity for Deltans and to train technicians in the field of motor vehicle mechanic, welding, electrical work, pain ting and driving; provide a reliable and affordable transportation for Deltans in particular and Nigeria in general; and enlarge the revenue of the state by operating a profit oriented limited liability company.
1.5 Research Questions
The study came up with research questions so as to be able to ascertain the above stated objectives. The specific research questions for the study are stated below as follows:
- How does the effect of bad environment affect the performance of workers?
- How does poor working environment affect the workers morale?
- How does customs and laws reduces workers morale?
- What are those factors that enhance productivity?
- What are the effects of work place environment?
1.6 Research Hypothesis
In order to pursue the objective of this study, the following generalized statements have been designed to guide and aids in obtaining the result for the experiment to be conducted. For this work, the null hypothesis will be represented with H0 while the alternative hypothesis will be represented with hypothesis H1.
Hypothesis One
- H0: A conducive work environment has no negative effect on employee’s productivity.
- H1: A conducive work environment has positive effect on employees productivity
Hypothesis Two
- H0: Provision of good environment does not deemed to be the most potent among workers to enhance productivity.
- H1: Provision of good environment is deemed to be the most potent among workers to enhance productivity.
Hypothesis Three
- H0: Customers and laws encourage workers morale.
- H1: Customers and laws encourage workers morale.
Hypothesis Four
- H0: The nature of work environment has no positive effect on workers’ productivity.
- H1: The nature of work environment has positive effect on workers’ productivity
1.7 Significance of Study
Many people in an organization try to attain a higher level safety or job security in their place of work. And this study when completed should be of immense help to different organization and individuals. It will help to highlight the effect of work environment on the productivity of employees in Delta Line, so that the management will look into the problems with a view to make an improvement on its environment.
It will enable the management to create a minimum standard of good working environment for workers to achieve optimum productivity. The study is intended to highlight management to create monetary incentive alone cannot motivate employees to better productivity without the provision of good environment under which they operate. Moreover, it will assist to uphold or testify the idea that good environment is very important and indispensable to growing needs of workers.
Finally, this research will also be beneficial to prospective students who will need some information contained in this work to guide their own research work which is related to the present study.
1.8 Scope of Study
The scope of this research is focused on the effect of work environment on employee productivity using Delta Line as a case study.
1.9 Limitations of the Study
During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:
- Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
- Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).
- Lack of Initial Cooperation from Respondents: A particular limitation of this work came as a result of the respondent refusal to offer their cooperation at the initial time they were contacted. This contributed in making the success of this research study difficult.
1.10 Operational Definition of Terms
Morale:
This is the capacity of a group’s member to maintain belief in an institution or goal particularly in the fall of opposition or hardship. Morale is often referenced by authority as a generic value judgment of the will power, obedience, and self discipline of a group tasked with performing duties assigned by a superior.
Job Security:
This is the probability that an individual will keep his or her job; it has been found that people have more job security in times of expansion and less in time of recession. Also some laws (such as the Rights Acts 1964)
Productivity:
Productivity is a ratio of production output to what is required to produce it (inputs.). Productivity is defined as a total output per unit of an input. These definitions are short but too general and insufficient to make the phenomenon productivity understandable a more detailed theory of productivity is needed, which defines and explains the phenomenon, productivity and makes it comprehensible in order to obtain a measurable form of productivity.
Prospective:
Literally means “looking forward” it can also be refer to an event that is likely or expected to happen in the future.
1.11 Summary
The effect of work environment on the employee’s productivity is deeming necessary for the productivity increment and high moral to work. The work environment has a far reaching effect on the morale of workers, but receives very little research attention specifically; this study is geared towards examining the various conditional factors of work environment ascertaining whether inadequacy of each of the various conditional factors can affect the productivity of workers. Base on the conclusion, work environment is improved such as neatness, noiseless, proper arranged and ventilated environment.
