Chapter – 1
Introduction and Research Design
1.1 Introduction:
Job satisfaction is considered as the amount or degree of gratification and contentment
that an employee fosters towards his/her overall job, factoring into that equation his/her
satisfaction with the job itself, the peers at the job, the supervisors, and the policies at work.
Various research studies have highlighted the importance of focusing on the issue of
employee job satisfaction, as it plays a critical role in overall firm success or demise.
Additionally, the importance of employee job satisfaction has been largely emphasized in the
literature because of its positive affect on employee job performance. The productivity of the
work force, in any organization, is a major driver which leads to achieving organizational
goals. This stresses on the importance of further focusing on job satisfaction as an essential
concern for family firms and large corporations equally.
The informal sector is alternatively called unorganized or unregistered units sector.
This sector exists only in developing countries characterized by high population growth,
economic and social underdevelopment, widespread poverty and unemployment. This
situation is widely prevalent in India. Employment means job or work, Employment generate
income for workers which is essential for leading a good physical life. The terms and
conditions of employment to the labourers differ across countries time periods and more
importantly by markets. Unemployment is a involuntary state of Worklessness!
unemployment could be seasonal, cyclical, frictional and structural in a developed country
whereas unemployment in a developing country like India, it is seasonal and structural .
The extent and severity of underemployment is measured on daily / weekly / yearly
basis. The unemployment of unskilled / semi-skilled workers in India and other developing
countries is more of daily / weekly unemployed. These workers are low-paid do not enjoy
social security benefits and do not have good quality regular jobs. Unorganized sector: It
means informal sector. The unorganised / informal sector is characterized by the use of
traditional labor intensive technology; locating the enterprise (firm) in the owners residence;
do not pay income / sales taxes; does not provide minimum wages and social security
benefits to the workers etc., The unorganized sector produces low quality goods. The market
for unorganized sector goods is the poor. The producers in unorganized / informal sector does
not have stable markets for their outputs; thus, they are unable to pay productivity linked
wages to their workers.
Recently, organizations have focused on maximizing productivity in order to maintain
their competitive stance and better deal with emerging trends such as globalization.
Nowadays, the general direction which firms take when expanding is into international
markets that reveal potentially rewarding new opportunities. However, whether it is
answering to customer needs or developing and growing on its own, a company needs to
ensure that its workforce is as productive as possible, and in order for the workforce to
perform at its utmost productivity, employees must feel a satisfaction relating to the nature of
the work they are performing.
The term 'unorganised worker' has been defined under the Unorganised Workers'
Social Security Act, 2008 as 'a home based-worker, self employed worker or a wage worker
in the unorganised sector and includes a worker in the organised sector who is not covered by
any of the Acts mentioned in scheduled II of its Act'. It is a sector where the employment
terms are fixed and regular, and the employees get assured work. The unorganised sector is
characterised by small and scattered units, which are largely outside the control of the
government. The job is regular and has fixed working hours. The term unorganised
sector when used in the Indian contexts defined by National Commission for Enterprises in
the Unorganised Sector, in their Report on Conditions of Work and Promotion of Livelihoods
in the Unorganised Sector as "... consisting of all unincorporated private enterprises owned
by individuals or households engaged in the sale or production of goods and services
operated on a proprietary or partnership basis and with less than ten total workers."
Amongst the characteristic features of this sector are ease of entry, smaller scale of
operation, local ownership, uncertain legal status, labour-intensive and operating using lower
technology based methods, flexible pricing, less sophisticated packing, absence of a brand
name, unavailability of good storage facilities and an effective distribution network,
inadequate access to government schemes, finance and government aid, lower entry barriers
for employees, a higher proportion of migrants with a lower rate of compensation. Employees
of enterprises belonging to the unorganised sector have lower job security and poorer chances
of growth, and no leave or paid holidays, they have lower protection against employers
indulging in unfair or illegal practices.A NCEUS report estimates that in 2005 out of the 458
million persons employed in India, 95 percent or 435 million worked in the unorganised
sector, generating 50.6 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product. Unorganised Sector:
This sector is characterised by scattered and small units which are largely outside the control
of the government.
The Evolution Institute (EI) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to apply
science-based solutions and use evidence-based best practices to solve today’s most pressing
social issues to improve quality of life. It was founded by David Sloan Wilson and Jerry
Lieberman in 2008 and is based near Tampa, Florida. Michelle Shimberg is the current
President of the organization’s Board of Directors. She is known for her experience with
school policy advocacy, housing strategies, and organization management. Developmental
psychologist David F. Bjorklund currently serves as Vice President, and Jerry Lieberman as
Treasurer/Secretary. In 2007, Jerry Lieberman, political scientist and then president of the
Humanists of Florida Association, reached out to David Sloan Wilson, evolutionary biologist
and author of Evolution for Everyone. Together they agreed to start an applied science-based
organization informed by evolutionary principles. At the time, David had just started a
community-based research project in Binghamton, NY that aligned with this objective. One
of the first topics of interest for EI was early childhood education, as well as economics and
the nature of work in the context of the great recession of 2008. This developed into a focus
on quality of life, with Norway as a case study of cultural evolution.
In 2010, cliodynamics scientist Peter Turchin joined EI as Vice-President and
founding member of the Board of Directors. Turchin founded the Seshat: Global History
Databank in 2011, a project that is currently part of the Evolution Institute.The online
magazine This View of Life was founded in 2014 by EI associate Robert Kadar and David
Sloan Wilson. In 2015, Evonomics: The Next Evolution of Economics was launched by
founding editor Robert Kadar with support from the Evolution Institute.In addition, the EI
held a workshop in 2015, “Advancing the Study of Cultural Evolution: Academic Integration
and Policy Applications,” that led to the formation of the Cultural Evolution Society, a
professional scientific society which aims to advance the theory and practice of cultural
evolutionary studies. In 2017, Evolution Institute opened a public charter school in an
underserved community of East Tampa, FL as part of their education initiative to improve
learning outcomes using science informed solutions and practices.
Job satisfaction, employee satisfaction or work satisfaction is a measure of workers'
contentedness with their job, whether they like the job or individual aspects or facets of jobs,
such as nature of work or supervision. Job satisfaction can be measured in cognitive
(evaluative), affective (or emotional), and behavioral components. Researchers have also
noted that job satisfaction measures vary in the extent to which they measure feelings about
the job (affective job satisfaction). or cognitions about the job (cognitive job satisfaction).One
of the most widely used definitions in organizational research is that of Edwin A.
Locke (1976), who defines job satisfaction as "a pleasurable or positive emotional state
resulting from the appraisal of one's job or job experiences" (p. 1304).Others have defined it
as simply how content an individual is with his or her job; whether he or she likes the job.It is
assessed at both the global level (whether the individual is satisfied with the job overall), or at
the facet level (whether the individual is satisfied with different aspects of the job). Spector
(1997) lists 14 common facets: appreciation, communication, coworkers, fringe benefits, Job
conditions, nature of the work, organization, personal growth, policies and procedures,
promotion opportunities, recognition, security, and supervision.
Job satisfaction is defined as the extent to which an employee feels self-motivated,
content & satisfied with his/her job. Job satisfaction happens when an employee feels that
he/she is having job stability, career growth and a comfortable work life balance. This implies
that the employee is having satisfaction at job as the work meets the expectations of the
individual.
There are a lot of factors which go together to ensure high job satisfaction rates in a
company. To begin with hygiene factors like good pay, work life balance, perks, leaves etc.
play a very important role in making sure that the employee is content in the job. Job
satisfaction can be a relative term as it may depend on an individual's perception but overall
job satisfaction can be judged through various indirect parameters like productivity, attrition
rate, employee feedback etc. It may also differ from industry to industry. The measurement or
perception of job satisfaction may be different from IT sector when compared to
manufacturing sector.
“Work-life balance” typically means the achievement by employees of equality
between time spent working and personal life. A good work-life balance for employees can
improve staff motivation, increase staff retention rates, reduce absence, attract new talent, and
reduce employee stress. With globalisation and rapid technological advances, boundaries
between work and home are blurring and demands on workers and enterprises have never
been higher. This has meant increasing challenges for workers to be able to successfully
reconcile the conflicting demands of paid work and their personal lives. Dramatic increases in
women’s labour force participation and the resulting demise of the so-called “male
breadwinner” model have often resulted in a “double burden” for women of both paid and
unpaid work. In addition, with the aging of the workforce in many countries, there are
increasing concerns about how workers can address the needs not only of their immediate
families, but of their extended families as well (e.g. elderly parents, disabled or ill relatives,
etc.). Work-life balance addresses how an organization's workforce prioritizes their personal
and professional activities. Work-life balance is a timely matter given the increased amount
of technology used to complete work activities and its ability to interrupt home life.Each
employee defines their ideal work-life balance differently, depending on commitments to
family, work priorities, health, and leisure.
The right to request flexible working is designed to encourage employees to improve
their work-life balance. Employees with 26 weeks’ continuous service have the right to
request from their employer a change to the number of hours they work, the times they work
or the place where they work. A good work-life balance, said Chris Chancey, career expert
and CEO of Amplio Recruiting, has numerous positive effects, including less stress, a lower
risk of burnout and a greater sense of well-being. This not only benefits employees but
employers, too. “Employers who are committed to providing environments that support
work-life balance for their employees can save on costs, experience fewer cases of
absenteeism, and enjoy a more loyal and productive workforce,” said Chancey. Employers
that offer options as telecommuting or flexible work schedules can help employees have a
better work-life balance. When creating a schedule that works for you, think about the best
way to achieve balance at work and in your personal life. Chancey said that work-life balance
is less about dividing the hours in your day evenly between work and personal life and,
instead, is more about having the flexibility to get things done in your professional life while
still having time and energy to enjoy your personal life. There may be some days where you
work longer hours so you have time later in the week to enjoy other activities
1.2 Statement of the problem:
The unorganized / informal sector is widely prevalent in developing countries. It is
characterized by low productivity, low and unstable market / demand, low quality output,
localized inputs and low literate / illiterate manual labour use etc.,. The unorganized /
informal sector is not regulated by any state legislation nor it is using modern sophisticated
technology. The unorganized sector units do not provide any social security benefits and fair
wages to their workers. The owners of the informal sector enterprises being individuals who
are either master craftsmen / merchants / contractors invest their personal capital /savings
which is small. The unorganized sector units are home based, mostly manual and traditional.
1.3 Research gap:
An overview of literature states that a number of studies have been undertaken related to job
satisfaction of unorganised workers in Karnataka, India and abroad. However, Karnataka most of
these studies were related difference between job satisfaction and other aspects like workers
relationship management practices. The determinants of these studies were similar but
methodologies varied. But, there is no evidence that any of the earlier research has not studied on
the object and scope of the topic which is chosen in this present study. Therefore, keeping this in
view, the present research has been taken up to study the perception of workers towards
unorganised sector. A review of the literature was conducted utilizing keywords such as “job
satisfaction”, “job performance”, “firm performance”, “financial performance of organizations”,
“employee affect”, and “employee moods”. Databases utilized, Digital Dissertations. The search
resulted in numerous refereed articles, books, and on-line resources. As sources were reviewed,
additional citations were found and explored.
1.4 Research questions:
1. What are the problems faced by unorganised workers during the course of their work?
2. What are the factors influencing the job satisfaction among unorganised workers?
3. What is determining the level of job satisfaction of unorganised workers?
4. What is comparing the level of job satisfaction between urban and rural unorganised
workers?
5. What is necessary recommendation for increasing the satisfaction level of workers if any?
1.5 Need for the study:
Job satisfaction is based on how we feel about our job – the good career components
that make us feel valued or let us feel like we have a purpose, vs. the bad components, such
as long hours or unpleasant tasks, or feeling undervalued as an employee. If employees are
happy and have high job satisfaction, they are more likely to work well in their jobs and stay
longer with a company. In fact, business units where employees score in the top half for
employee engagement have a 50% higher success rate on productivity outcomes, on average.
Employee satisfaction is a state where individuals are not only happy with their current
profiles but also look forward towards a long term association with the organization. No
individual wants to quit his/her job after every six months. But the moment monotony creeps
in, people start looking for better opportunities. Most of the times, employees treat their jobs
just as a mere source of earning their bread and butter. They come to office not because they
enjoy their work but because they need their salaries to ensure a comfortable living.
1.6 Objectives of the Study:
1. To identify the problems faced by unorganised workers during the course of their work.
2. To identify the factors influencing the job satisfaction among unorganised workers.
3. To determine the level of job satisfaction of unorganised workers.
4. To compare the level of job satisfaction between urban and rural unorganised workers.
5. To make necessary recommendation for increasing the satisfaction level of workers if any.
1.7 Hypotheses of the Study:
H1: There is no significant relationship between workers and their opinion about present
infrastructure of the organization.
H2: There is no significant relationship between workers and their opinion about work allotted to
you.
H3: There is no significant relationship between workers and their opinion about working
Environment is highly Satisfactory.
H4: There is no significant relationship between workers and their opinion about comfortable
sharing your opinions at work.
H5: There is no significant relationship between workers and their opinion about good
relationship with coordinates.
H6: There is no significant relationship between workers and their opinion about satisfied with
the working environment of the organization.
1.8 Research methodology:
The present study is engaged in detailed understanding of Job Satisfaction towards
Unorganised Workers. An empirical study is being endeavoured to capture the perception
level and satisfaction level of the unorganised workers.
Source of Data:
Primary Data: The required data for the study is collected through primary sources.
The primary data has been collected by distributing the questionnaire to unorganised
workers.
Sample: A total number of 50 respondents have been selected in order to get
information about Job satisfaction among unorganised workers.
1.9 Scope of the study:
This study focuses on the perception and satisfaction level of respondents about Job
satisfaction among unorganised workers. Variables such as age, gender, education, annual
income, have been analysed thoroughly in this study. The present study covers the area of
kuvempu university jnana sahyadri Shankaraghatta shivamogga district.
1.10 Limitations of the study:
The present study is limited to analyse the job satisfaction of unorganised workers in
kuvempu university.
Sampling size is limited to 50 respondents.
The survey is useful only for certain period of time.
1.11 Chapter – Scheme:
This study has been structure in the following
Chapter – I Introduction
Chapter – II Review of Literature
Chapter – III Conceptual frame work
Chapter – IV Analysis and Interpretation of Data
Chapter – V Major findings, Suggestion and Conclusion
