CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1. Background To The Study:

The organizational environment plays an essential role for the employees. These days employees may have a large number of working alternatives, thus the environment in the workplace becomes a critical factor for accepting and/or keeping the jobs. The quality of the environment in the workplace may simply determine the level of employee motivation, subsequent performance, and productivity.

Therefore, human resource managers (HR) need to consider new strategies for selecting and retaining the best talents for their organizations. Higher salaries and compensation benefits may seem the most likely way to attract employees. Some factors in the workplace environment may be considered essential such as employee engagement, productivity, morale, comfort level, etc. both positively and negatively.

Human effort in the organization is indispensable. It constitutes a complex phenomenon for managers of such organizations to comprehend. Accordingly, it is believed that every behaviour is goal-directed. Hence the effect of the work environment in achieving the set target for the organization must be in adequate condition.

Therefore, the nature of office concerned with these things that influence workers’ productivity, which constitute the “why” of people behaviour’s? Why do people do things differently? Why is X’s moral higher than Z’s? What are these increases in work productivity?

However, the organizational target can only be achieved if the environment is conducive. The work environment consists of the office buildings, their 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 operate.

These environmental factors are always changing and the office must react to the changes, but how do the customs and laws reduce workers’ morale? This question can be answered after investigation. The office and work environment are dynamic, but the most dynamic factor in the office is the human factor.

Workers today are more educated than before. They are more likely to raise questions about their environment of work since management itself is a dynamic pro. It has adhered to and addresses itself to the provision of a good environment of work for workers’ productivity. But what are those increases that enhance productivity? Therefore, an answer will be made after investigations.

However, poor work environment and bad conditions such as improper lighting and ventilation, excessive noise and emergency excess, have posed a great danger to workers health and therefore make them work with less joy and enthusiasms and work progress is hampered and disrupted. There are many organizations in which employees encounter working conditions problems related to environmental and physical factors. Perch and Slade (2006) argued that employee disengagement is increasing and it becomes more important to make workplaces that positively influence the workforce.

An understanding of the effect of the work environment on the productivity of employees cannot be over-emphasized or seen as an overstatement in every organization. Experience has shown that workers are directly influenced by the environment they find themselves or where their competence will achieve nothing in terms of productivity if the environment is not conducive. This is in respect of workers AMSS (Alpha Marine Shipping Services) Service and the issue of the unproductive nature of workers is compounded with the poor nature of the environment.

Therefore, because of the adverse effect of the work environment on the morale of employees, the need for the provision of a good physical work environment for workers was stated by Mill in 1930 after the First World War.

During this period, various management teams 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 the feeling of insecurity in relation to employment, unfairness on the part. of supervision and not being accepted by one’s fellow employees.

There is a great need for a standard of working conditions received legal backing by 1963 law and the act of parliament which made it mandatory for all business organizations to provide the minimum standard of interest that will enhance the performance of employees as an objective.

The research presents the analysis of the working environment of Alpha Marine Shipping Service ltd Limbe at Mukudange.

1.2. Problem Statement And Justification Of The Study:

Every organization in today’s world is set up for a purpose which is generally known as objectives. These objectives can be archive when employee productivity is realized and the working environment is healthy. Elnaga (2013), says that employee performance is important for the company to make every effort to help low performers.

With all the increasing importance of the work environment to employee productivity, many organisations still base more of their attention on objectives without focusing any attention on the factor which triggers the productivity of the employee which is the work environment.

The absence of important of work material as a result of non-availability of some necessary office facilities like air-conditioning, rugs or tiles, good ventilation in some of the department in the company is a common feature. Some offices or departments look depressing and stimulating.

Some of them have no louvers, light, the absence of mobile network in the company or work environment, absence of medical team personnel in the work environment, no regulations governing the personnel at the workplace, no first aids at the workplace, no risk prevention measures at the work environment and some with uncompleted roofs.

These acts of negligence by the managers have gone a long way to reduce workers’ performance or morale. The state of affairs in the company has resulted to a negative attitude by the employees which is inimical to the progress and accomplishment of the company’s set objective.

The reason for caring out the research is to meet the partial requirement for the award of B-TECH. As an undergraduate in the field of logistics and transport management, the quest to know more and better gave me the urge to carry out this research and lastly in other to actually understand how exactly how the work environment is vital in improving employee productivity for and organisations. In an attempt to answer the questions in the research work

Research Questions:

This research study on the impact of work environment on employee’s productivity has two sets of questions to answer that is main and specific research questions.

Main Research Question;

The study has a primary research question which is, how does the work environment affect the productivity of the employee in an organization using Alpha Marine Shipping Service ltd as a case study?

Specific Objectives;

1. What is the relationship between workplace conditions and employee performance?
2. What is the factor that develops the workplace environment and impacts positively on employee’s productivity?
3. How does those employee’s welfare impact their performance, partially?
4. How does training, and development impacts employee performance?
5. How work environment affects customer relationship?

Further Readings

THE EFFECTS OF WORKING ENVIRONMENT ON EMPLOYEE’S PERFORMANCE IN PRIVATE UNIVERSITIES IN CAMEROON: CASE STUDY BIAKA UNIVERSITY INSTITUTE OF BUEA (BUIB)