Labour and Workplace Issues - Iloka Benneth Chiemelie, Okafor Escalus

3.0 LABOUR AND WORKPLACE ISSUES

Human capital (workforce) at organisational level is made of certain components that include health care, migration, and training and development (Becker, 1993). Among these components, education, work experience, and knowledge, and skill have been considered the most important elements that determine level of workforce productivity and labour compensation (Becker, 1993; Li and Ding, 2003).

Workplace generally refers to both external and internal working environment of any given organisation. Extensive researchers have examined the rate of return on investment in human capital and the impact of workforce on organisational performance (Mincer, 1974; Lai, 1998; Li and Ding, 2003; Li and Li, 1994; Psacharopoulos, 1994; Sturm, 1993; Wang et al., 2007). Although globalizations have helped in cultivating more innovative and unique workforce, certain issues have been associated with workforce and labour across companies and countries. Some of these issues are Employment Law, Human Resources, Wage and Hour, Business Immigration, Discrimination, Health Issues, and Labor Relations. The preceding paragraph will provide an in-depth study and analyses on these issues highlighted above.

EMPLOYMENT DISCRIMINATION ISSUES IN WORKPLACE

Dipboye and Colella (2005, p. 2) defined discrimination as an unfair behavioural biasness against members of a group on the bases of group identity (Cox, 1993, p. 64), social class (Jones, 1986), dishonour (Goffman, 1963), or individual characteristics (Messner, 1989, p. 71)relative to their group with high potential, performance, or proven success (Cascio, 1998). Discrimination therefore, is an unfair differential treatment offered to a certain member of group due to their virtue of favouritism against other member of the same group.

Causes of workplace discrimination issues: Discrimination in an organisation can take many root as religious, racial, behavioural, and ethnic or ability. Although the most commonly visible form of discrimination is religion, racial discrimination is on the rise mainly attribute to the increased free movement of workforce and workplaces dues to globalization. For instance, a study in Canada found that racial discrimination of South Africans in the workplace where only targeted at Black South Africans while Caucasian South Africans did not suffer such discrimination (Esses et al., 2006).

Discrimination in workplace can be detrimental as it can lead to low self-esteem, reduce motivation and commitment rate and high employee turnover. This is because, as individuals a workplace with discriminating factors tend to increase the idea that self-actualizations cannot be attained under such atmosphere. Thus, it is necessary that organisations treat the issue of workplace discrimination in other to maintain and possibility increase their productivity rate.

Recommendation for controlling workplace discrimination issues:It is thus recommended, that companies should adapt strict rules and regulation that are meant to reduce workplace discrimination as well as implementing these rules and regulations to the most extreme level in other to eliminate this issue. An organisation culture that encourages learning through idea sharing and teamwork can also reduce discrimination in workplace as the workforce will be more focused on productivity rather than individual differences.

ISSUES OF WAGES AND WORK HOUR IN WORKPLACE

As of recent, many countries have become industrialized nation across the globe with high rising building, roads, airports and professional businesses. Thus, looking into this concept, the overall performance of human capital never stops to overwhelm us, but the workplace presents questionable areas in terms of fair payment and working hours. Overtime generally can be seen as any time spent in the organisation working, besides that which is stipulated in the work contract (Arthur, 2002).

Causes of wages and work hour issues in workplaces: wages and work hour becomes an issue when employees are meant to work more than they are being supposed to and left without fair compensation for this time. Overtime with no doubt increases productivity in the workplace, as employees devote their personal time in their workplace doing jobs that are directly or indirectly impacting success on the company they work for (Bluhm, 2001).

This becomes an issue when companies don't fully be compensating these employees for such time. They have been many reported cases of such incidence where employees work more than their contract times and not being fully paid. This can reduce their motivation level, and thus reduce their commitment and productivity rate too. It can also affect their health as they sometimes have overloaded works to handle.

Recommendations for controlling this issue: In recommendation, it must be noted that the government as well as the companies have a role to play. The government can play a role through the labor union to ensure that employees work more than they're supposed to, and are fully compensated when they work overtime. The company can on the other hand, contribute to the society by being ethical and fully valuing their employees with respect to their health and full compensation on all productive time being offered to the company.

 ISSUES OF WORKPLACE BULLYING

In recent years, workplace bullying has been a field of interest as researchers want to understand its causes and how to solve it (Einarsen et al., 1994; Hoel et al., 2003). Workplace bullying have described as including aggressive verbal, nonverbal, physical, and nonphysical behaviours, harassment, and aggression (Yamada, 2000, p. 478; Felson, 2000, p. 10).

Causes of workplace bullying: Bullies can also sue other forms to exert their desire on targets like: exclusion, stereotyping, lying, broken promises, rudeness, ingratitude (Gabriel, 1998), spreading malicious rumours, intimidation, constant change to work pattern, unnecessary disruption of work, limited access to career enhancing opportunities, high pressure to produce results, and holding back important information (Gabriel, 1998; Farrell, 1999; Lee, 2000; Quine, 2002; Vickers, 2007).

For instance, in a workplace the bully can subject his subordinate (Target) to undertake heavy tasks which possibly could not be part of the subordinate's responsibility (e.g. financial analysis) and ask the subordinate to produce the result within 24 hours when it could possibly take up to 5 days to produce such result. When employees notice they are subject of workplace bullying, it becomes a bemoaning phenomenon on their productivity level and could result in them quitting the organisation. Workplace bullying is a serious issue if we consider the psychological effects it can result to such when a female work is sexually harassed.

Recommendations for controlling workplace bullying: In order to result this issue, an open freedom organisation system that practices equality and freedom to make decisions is needed. This implies that organisations can operate in such a way that each employee whether they are the supervisors, managers, or just normal staffs has freedom to make their own decisions in their job areas, and everybody is seen as being equal. This will ensure that workers who are subject to work place bullying fully report the bullies to the management and the management should take drastic measures to ensure that bullies are treated and set as an example to other staffs that could have bullying intentions.

EMPLOYEE SAFETY AND HEALTH ISSUES IN WORKPLACE

The growing relevance of intangible resources and assets in safety at workplace have aided in providing of theoretical and empirical supports.Shannon et al. (2001), for instance, believe that conventional prevention, despite the contribution to improvement at workplaces throughout the twentieth century is limited in effect. Workplace place issues is without doubt of big concern to organisation as an epidemic in the workforce have the potential of crippling the workplace place for certain period of time, thus reducing their productivity.

Causes of safety and health issues in workplace: For instance, let us take into account the recent nuclear problem in japan. If an organisation that produces chemicals for other organisations happens to overlook the importance of workplace issue, and employees are being submerged to dangerous chemicals; this can result in health problems like minor issues (headaches) and serious health issues (cancer and possible death). Assuming 80% of the population suffer headache or other sicknesses due to exposure to these dangerous chemicals, it is with no doubt that it will reduce the organisation's productivity. Thus, it can be seen that health issues are important for all organisation that wants to increase sustainability and maintain or increase productivity level.

Recommendation for controlling this issue: Following Schumpeter (1934) and Nahapiet and Ghoshal (1998) health education and workplace training is the best recommendation possible. Organisations should educate their workforce on possible health issues common the workplace, and provide reading signs and warning symbols at all dangerous areas within the workplace. This will reduce the possibility of workplace epidemic and limit their expenditure when such cases arise in the workplace.

ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE AND PATTERN

Corporate culture has been defined by many authors in different ways. However, many researchers agree that corporate culture can be described as a set of values, beliefs, and behaviour patterns that form the core identity of organisations, and aids shaping the ways employees behave in the organisation (Deal and Kennedy, 1982; Jones, 1983; Schein, 1992; Kotter and Heskett, 1992; Pheysey, 1993; Van der Post et al., 1998; Deshpande and Farley, 1999). Corporate culture is a pattern of beliefs, symbols, rituals, myths, and practices that have evolved overtime in an organisation (Pheysey, 1993). It underlines the statement "this is how we do things around here" (Deal and Kennedy, 1982; Quinn, 1988).

Causes of organisational culture and pattern issues in the workforce: organisational culture and pattern becomes an issue when organisational culture contradicts with the national or ethnic cultures of employee's place of origin. With the world constantly moving towards a globalized community, it is not uncommon for individuals to find themselves working in different culture, and cultural influence is something that is inbuilt in every individual from birth; thus, is not easy to overlook the fact that these influences our basic behavioural pattern.

For instance, let us take a Malaysian employee working for a Japanese company in Japan. This employee might not know that in Japan, when Japanese staffs want to talk to their boss, they have to exhibit some form of respect by bringing their head down in the form of "bowing" especially if their boss is shorter than them. Without this knowledge, the Malaysian employee might be looking directly into the boss's eyes of just talk without bowing and the boss might consider it an act of respect which could potential result in workplace conflict etc. Other forms of organisational culture can include dressing code, working in team and communication style.

Recommendations for controlling this issue: In other to resolve this issue, it is suggested that every organisation should have a conduct of conduct given to each employee upon recruitment or selection to guide them on the organisational culture and how things are being handled in the organisation. Employees can also learn from their colleagues and superiors. This will reduce and possibly eliminate conflicts related to organisational culture.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, this research paper has been able to present critical reviews on some of the business issues faced by organisations across the globe. The issues discussed in this paper, where issues of technological development, international negotiation and workplace and how these issues affect businesses.

The research paper was able to presented clear definitions to these issues, and examples to further illustrates how these issues can be seen in organisation as well as how to resolve these issues with recommended steps. As organisations constantly look for ways to expand and attract new customers, it is with no doubt that these issues can negative affect their productivity and profit, therefore it is necessary that managements of each organisation find ways to handle these issues.

Nevertheless, although they are clear examples with real life scenarios in organisations across the globe, it must be understood that this is a secondary research. Thus, they could be limitations on the applicability of the recommendations across different organisations, but these issues are of the same effect no matter the organisation or place of origin.

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