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CHALLENGES IN CONTROLLING LATENESS, ABSENTEEISM AND

LABOUR TURNOVER. A CASE STUDY OF CHRIST APOSTOLIC

UNIVERSITY COLLEGE, KWADASO, KUMASI.

By

Philipine Aseye Kasu, BBA Management

© 2014 Department of Managerial Science

A Thesis submitted to the Department of Managerial Science, Kwame Nkrumah

University of Science and Technology in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the

degree of

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION (HUMAN RESOURCE

MANAGEMENT OPTION)

School of Business, KNUST

College of Art and Social Sciences

July 2014

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DECLARATION

I hereby declare that this submission is my own work towards the Master of Business

Administration (Human Resource Management Option) Degree and that, to the best of

my knowledge, it contains no material previously published by another person nor

material which has been accepted for the award of any other degree of the University,

except where due acknowledgement has been made in the text.

Philipine Aseye Kasu ...................................... ..........................................

(PG 7638012) Signature Date

Certified by:

Mr. J. K. Turkson .................................................................................

(Supervisor) Signature Date

Certified by:

Mr. J. K. Turkson ......................................... ....................................

(Head of Department) Signature Date

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ABSTRACT

Organizations over the world face challenges of controlling lateness, absenteeism and

labour turnover among their employees and these have been issues of much worry to

most employers. Efforts have been made to permanently curb these problems in order

to avoid the costs that come with them but unfortunately there seems to be no

permanent solutions. This study therefore looked at the causes and effects of these

withdrawal behaviours and challenges employers are facing in trying to curb them and

the possible measures that can be put in place to curb them with Christ Apostolic

University College (CAUC), Kwadaso as a case study. Questionnaires and interviews

were used as the main data collection tools to solicit responses from employees and

management of CAUC. The responses from the questionnaires were analyzed using the

Statistical Product for Service Solutions (SPSS), which generated the frequency

distributions and the various rankings of the responses and regression analysis. The

study found out that most employees at the case study institution were reporting late to

work and were sometimes absent from work due to low morale. This low morale the

study revealed was caused by low salaries and other factors. The study also revealed

that some of the employees were planning to leave the institution soon if factors such as

low salaries among others still prevailed. The main challenges management had were

the fact that these withdrawal behaviours were human attitudes and therefore difficult to

change, manipulation of attendance registers by employees among others and

management had also put in place measures such as assessment of lecturers, they were

planning to acquire a biometric clocking system and working on improving salaries. It

has been recommended that closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras be acquired,

backup childcare centres be created, salaries be increased among other things.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

An academic work of this nature is an onerous one and one could not have

accomplished it without the assistance of a Supervisor, friends and well wishers.

I wish to thank the Almighty God for his care and guidance and also for granting me the

energy and wisdom which saw me successfully through this project.

My outmost gratitude goes to Mr. James K. Turkson my Supervisor for his guidance,

suggestions and selflessness throughout the research and presentation of the final work.

I also thank all staff of CAUC who offered me a lot of assistance and willingly provided

all the information that was needed.

Finally I extend my profound appreciation and gratitude to Mr. Jerry Jay Kraa a course

mate and a Graduate Assistant at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and

Technology and Mr. Joshua Kumi, the Accountant of Christ Apostolic University

College for their encouragement and contributions in diverse ways.

God bless you all richly!!!

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DEDICATION

I dedicate this work to my mum Ms. Phyllis Emefa Senyo for her tireless efforts in

every aspect of my life and her free will to shoulder my needs even at the graduate

level. I LOVE YOU MUM.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

CONTENTS PAGE

Title page .......................................................................................... i

Declaration .......................................................................................... ii

Abstract .......................................................................................... iii

Acknowledgement .............................................................................. iv

Dedication .......................................................................................... v

Table of contents ...................................................................................... vi

List of tables .......................................................................................... ix

List of figures ........................................................................................... x

List of abbreviations ............................................................................... xi

CHAPTER ONE – INTRODUCTION

1.0 Background of the study ........................................................ 1

1.1 Problem statement ........................................................ 3

1.2 Objectives of the study ........................................................ 4

1.2.1 General Objective ........................................................ 4

1.2.2 Specific Objective ........................................................ 4

1.3 Research questions ........................................................ 5

1.4 Scope of the study ........................................................ 5

1.5 Justification of the study ....................................................... 5

1.6 Overview of research methodology ............................... 6

1.7 Limitation of the study ....................................................... 6

1.8 Organisation of the study ....................................................... 7

CHAPTER TWO – LITERATURE REVIEW

2.0 Introduction ...................................................... 8

2.1 Employee lateness ...................................................... 8

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2.1.1 Causes of employee lateness ............................................. 8

2.1.2 Effects of employee lateness ............................................. 10

2.1.3 Measures used in controlling employee lateness ................ 11

2.1.4 Challenges in controlling employee lateness ..................... 12

2.2 Employee absenteeism ......................................................... 13

2.2.1 Types of employee absenteeism ................................. 13

2.2.2 Causes of employee absenteeism ................................. 14

2.2.3 Effects of employee absenteeism ................................. 16

2.2.4 Measures used in controlling absenteeism ......................... 17

2.2.5 Challenges in controlling employee absenteeism ............... 18

2.3 Labour turnover ..................................................................... 19

2.3.1 Types of labour turnover ............................................. 19

2.3.2 Causes of labour turnover ............................................ 20

2.3.3 Effects of labour turnover ............................................ 24

2.3.4 Measures used in controlling labour turnover ................... 26

2.4 Conceptual framework ………………………….... 27

CHAPTER THREE – METHODOLOGY AND

ORGANISATIONAL PROFILE

3.0 Introduction ........................................................ 29

3.1 Research design ........................................................ 29

3.2 Sources of data ........................................................ 29

3.2.1 Primary data ........................................................ 29

3.2.2 Secondary data ........................................................ 29

3.3 Population ........................................................ 30

3.4 Sample size ........................................................ 30

3.5 Sampling techniques ....................................................... 30

3.6 Data collection instruments ........................................................ 31

3.6.1 Questionnaire ........................................................ 31

3.6.2 Interview ........................................................ 31

3.7 Data analysis technique ......................................................... 31

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3.8 Profile of CAUC ......................................................... 32

3.9 Brief history of CAUC ......................................................... 32

4.0 Mission and Vision ......................................................... 33

4.1 Staffing situation ......................................................... 34

4.2 Main activity of CAUC ......................................................... 34

CHAPTER FOUR – DATA PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS

AND DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS

4.0 Introduction ................................................................................. 36

4.1 Analysis of demography of respondents ................................. 36

4.2 Causes of lateness absenteeism and labour turnover ..................... 42

4.3 Effects of lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover ..................... 58

on productivity at CAUC

4.4 Challenges Management is facing in controlling ..................... 63

lateness, absenteeism and

4.5 Measures Management has in place so far to control ..................... 65

lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover

CHAPTER FIVE – SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, CONCLUSION

AND RECOMMENDATIONS

5.0 Introduction ......................................................... 68

5.1 Summary of findings ......................................................... 68

5.2 Conclusion ......................................................... 70

5.3 Recommendations ......................................................... 70

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LIST OF TABLES

Table 3.1 - Population of CAUC

Table 3.2 - Staffing situation

Table 4.3.1 - Age of respondents

Table 4.4.2 - Educational background of respondents

Table 4.5.3 - Rank of employees

Table 4.6.7 - Respondents‟ number of dependents

Table 4.7.8 - Income level

Table 4.8.9 - Official reporting time to work

Table 4.9.10 - Respondents‟ reporting time to work

Table 4.10.11 - Distance of respondents‟ residence from work

Table 4.11 - Official reporting time to work * Distance of

employees‟ residence from work

Table 4.12.12 - Mode of getting to work

Table 4.13.13 - Number of times respondents are absent from work

in a month

Table 4.14.14 - Whether respondents seek permission when absent

Table 4.15.15 - How long respondents intend to work with CAUC

Table 4.16.16 - Low morale

Table 4.17.17 - Emergency e.g. Sickness, accidents, poor weather

conditions

Table 4.18.18 - Other circumstances e.g. car problems

Table 19.19.19 - Respondents‟ idea of their contribution to productivity

Table 4.20 - Educational background * I feel important, without

there will be no productivity

Table 4.21.20 - Flexible working schedule

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Table 4.22.21 - Low salary levels

Table 4.23.22 - No opportunity for advancement

Table 4.24.23 - Delayed promotion

Table 4.25.24 - Respondents‟ opinion of causes of low morale at

CAUC

Table 4.26 - Low morale * Income level

Table 4.27 - Regression analysis

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LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 2.1 - Conceptual framework

Figure 4.2.4 - A pie chart showing category of respondents

Figure 4.3.5 - A pie chart showing gender of respondents

Figure 4.3.6 - A bar chart showing marital status of respondents

Figure 4.5.28 - A pyramid showing the agreement of respondents

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

SPSS – Statistical Product for Service Solutions

CAUC – Christ Apostolic University College

CACI – Christ Apostolic Church International

NAB – National Accreditation Board

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CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.0 Background of the study

Organizations over the world face challenges in controlling lateness, absenteeism and

labour turnover among their employees and these have been issues of much worry to

many employers. Efforts have been made to permanently curb these problems but

unfortunately there seems to be no permanent solutions. Lateness to work has been a

challenge of many employees due to personal and external forces. Lateness in

organizations bring both economic and psychological consequences on level of output

and organizations must strive to control and minimize it. When an employee arrives to

work late, it puts the whole organisation‟s production plan into disorder. This may go a

long way to affect productivity and therefore the organisation‟s effectiveness. If the

organization provides service, the employee‟s lateness may affect the quality and or

quantity of service offered, especially in a setup where one employee‟s output is the

other‟s input (Blau, 1994).

There are various researches that have been conducted on the question of how to reduce

absenteeism within organizations. There are various reasons why employees may

absent themselves from work. These range from illness, death of relatives, travelling

for funerals among others. According to Allegro and Veerman (1990) there are

(a) White absenteeism: In situations where the employee may be ill for example

having a high fever or broken leg may constitute white absenteeism.

(b) Grey: With grey absenteeism, the employee‟s illness is as a result of

psychological or psychosomatic, such as headache, stomach ache or tiredness

(c) Black absenteeism: An employee who is not ill at all reports himself or herself

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sick constitutes black absenteeism also known as illegal absenteeism.

The ability of organizations to effectively control and manage absenteeism will

determine the impact on output of work in organizations. Sometimes, it is difficult to

determine if the employee has a genuine concern to absent themselves from work as

black absenteeism is controlled and at the discretion of the employee.

There have been attempts to understand why upon measures that are put in place by

organizations, there is prevalence of labour turnover. There is also an attempt to

understand management turnover and to ascertain why people quit their employment

career. Carbery et al., (2003) are of the view that, all other things being equal,

management turnover is likely to be lower than operational employees and this may be

as a result of the fact that they are more dedicated and sometimes have a stake in the

organization. There is also a consequence of labour turnover hindering the achievement

of broader business outcome as it involves a lot of cost in training, induction, growth

and skills development to replace employees who quit the organization. Controlling

labour turnover is important for organizations and must be efficiently dealt with because

of the impact on organizations. A substantial but often-overlooked direct cost is that of

hiring a person to cover absentee staff, a common practice in businesses leading to a

certain degree of turnover.

Lateness, absenteeism and turnover have been labelled by Hill and Twist (1955) as

withdrawal behaviours that work psychologists think is a product of unfavourable job

attitudes which are influenced by factors such as pay, job security, recognition and

appreciation, working hours and physical conditions among others. There are also

psychological withdrawal behaviours such as lack of creativity, minimal effort on a job

among others which often manifests in the form of laziness and refusal to think to

improve creativity (Pinder, 2008). The study therefore seeks to look at challenges in

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controlling lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover using Christ Apostolic University

College (CAUC) as a case study.

1.1 Problem statement

Withdrawal behaviours in the form of lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover is very

costly to every organization even in developed countries like the United Kingdom (UK).

A research conducted into the Northern Ireland‟s Local Government Organizations

found that the economy lost about £250 million due to absenteeism of staff in the public

sector (Local Government Auditor, 1999).

DeLonzer (2005) estimated lateness of employees to cost the US businesses more than

$3 billion each year, absenteeism has also been estimated to cost about 15% of payroll

cost (Navarro & Bass, 2006) and cost of employing new workers as a result of turnover

has been estimated between 50% and 200% of those workers first year salaries (Fitz-

enz, 1997).

Many staff of the CAUC exhibit some of these withdrawal behaviours which are costly

to the organization. Many of the staff report late to work resulting in delays in

administrative and academic schedules and therefore fall in productivity. Sometimes,

some employees absent themselves without permission and when permission is sought

it is sought late creating difficulties in arranging replacements. The CAUC is in its third

year of existence and four employees have resigned.

The core aim of every organization is to maximize profit and therefore any form of cost

should be eliminated. It is therefore against this background that the researcher seeks to

identify measures that the CAUC can use in controlling lateness, absenteeism and

labour turnover (withdrawal behaviours), the possible challenges it will face trying to

curb them and the solutions to these challenges.

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1.2 Objectives of the study

The objectives of the study are grouped into general objective and specific objectives.

1.2.1 General objective

The overall objective of this study is to ascertain the challenges in controlling lateness,

absenteeism and labour turnover.

1.2.2 Specific objectives

Specifically, the study seeks;

(a) To investigate causes of lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover among

employees of Christ Apostolic University College.

(b) To ascertain the effects of lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover on

productivity

at Christ Apostolic University College.

(c) To identify the challenges management face in controlling lateness, absenteeism

and labour turnover among employees of Christ Apostolic University College.

(d) To examine the measures management is putting in place in controlling lateness,

absenteeism and labour turnover among employees of Christ Apostolic

University

College.

1.3 Research questions

The following research questions were set in order to achieve the objectives of the

study:

(a) What are the causes of lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover among

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employees of Christ Apostolic University College?

(b) What effects do lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover have on productivity

at Christ Apostolic University College?

(c) What challenges is management facing in curbing lateness, absenteeism and

labour turnover among employees of Christ Apostolic University College?

(d) What measures is management of Christ Apostolic University College putting in

place in controlling lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover among

employees?

1.4 Scope of the study

The focus of the study is on employees‟ lateness, absenteeism, and labour turnover at

Christ Apostolic University College. The research was limited to management and staff

at CAUC, Kwadaso, Kumasi. Management comprised of the President and the

Registrar. Staff comprised of both teaching and non-teaching staff.

1.5 Justification of the study

The study is important as it will contribute to dealing with lateness, absenteeism and

labour turnover. The research will serve as a guide and successive tool for potential

entrepreneurs and organizations that want to enter the education industry to know the

value of effective management of employees with respect to lateness, absenteeism and

labour turnover. This study will therefore serve as a successive tool for educational

institutions battling with these challenges. Also, the research will help Management of

CAUC in restructuring their human resource capabilities by putting strategies in place

to control lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover. The study will in this regard be

very useful in employee retention and minimizing the negative effects of lateness,

absenteeism and labour turnover. The study will serve as a base for further research for

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students, consultants, teachers and others who are interested in the study of similar

topic. It will also serve as an academic reference in Human Resource Management and

Management related disciplines.

1.6 Overview of the Research Methodology

The population of this study comprised of Staff and Management of CAUC. The study

relied on both primary and secondary sources of data. Secondary sources of

information included literature from journals, textbooks, manuals, reports, and

publications and articles from the internet. The primary sources of data required

information from respondents through filling of questionnaires concerning the research

under study. Data collected were subjected to critical analysis and examinations to

enable the researcher come out with findings. Statistical Product for Service Solution

(SPSS) was used to facilitate the analysis.

1.7 Limitation of the study

The researcher was limited by the reluctance of some respondents to complete the

questionnaires promptly and also provide some of the information required. Some of

the respondents were economical with information: possibly they thought the researcher

could be an agent of management.

1.8 Organization of the study

The study is divided into five chapters:

Chapter one which is on introduction captured the background of the study, problem

statement, objectives of the study, research questions, justification of the study, scope of

the study, limitations of the study and organization of the study. Chapter two reviews

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existing literature on lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover and their relevant

dimensions. Chapter three discusses the methodology used to accomplish the study.

Chapter four explores and discusses research findings and analysis of data that were

collected. Finally chapter five looks at the summary of findings, conclusion and

recommendations.

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CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.0 Introduction

This chapter presents the literature for the study. It focuses on findings from previous

studies with regard to lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover. It highlights the

theoretical perspective under which major concepts are discussed. The chapter also

expands the definition of these three issues and their causes, effects on organizations,

measures that can be used in controlling them and the possible challenges one will face

in trying to control them.

2.1 Employee lateness

Lateness behaviour can be described as arriving at work after the scheduled time

(Shafritz, 1980). Mobley (1987) described lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover as

withdrawal behaviour. Compared to the latter behaviours, lateness is a milder form of

withdrawal. Another distinctive characteristic of lateness is that, it can be controlled by

the employee unlike dismissal by an employer or absenteeism due to sickness. Most of

the lateness occurrences can be avoided (Sagie, 1998). Employee lateness is where an

employee goes or reports to his/her workplace late than the expected reporting time.

Example is when an employee reports to work at 9 o‟clock instead of 8 o‟clock.

2.1.1 Causes of employee lateness

Various causes of employee lateness have been postulated by various researchers.

Some of these are discussed below;

(a) Low morale

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The level of employee morale is a key factor considering causes of lateness. No

compensation or workplace mistreatment on the side of leaders will help employees

have many reasons not showing up for work on time (Ralston, 1989).

(b) Illness

Workers who work long hours than they should or employees who are forced to work

long hours or are deliberate workaholics can force themselves into depression, tiredness

or physical pain. With this, it will be difficult to encourage themselves to attend work

on scheduled time (Richard and Slane, 1990).

(c) Arrogance

Some staff will think they are very important and without them there is going to be low

productivity, others may feel their work cannot be done by anyone else and therefore

may not obey rules. Managers must ensure discipline for lateness and follow work

rules. Failure to do so can cause dislike and loss of respect from fellow workers and

other workers may feel not valued and this may lead to late show up at work (Blau,

1994).

(d) Emergencies

Household crises, poor weather conditions or car accidents are incidents bound to

happen and thus employers should not find fault with; however, workers must alert their

employers immediately such incidents happen for courtesy and responsibility sake. In

the case of emergencies if they fail to do so, employers must call their employees to

know how they are doing (Barton, 1994).

(e) Minor circumstances

According to him, Lateness to work is sometimes caused by situations beyond workers

capabilities. Traffic jams, car problems or public transit issues are few things that

workers cannot avoid because it is part of life. In such conditions, it is expected of

managers to show understanding and flexibility on the side of workers. Management‟s

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failure to do so can make the employee feel oppressed or afraid, resulting in low morale

at work and in turn, less output. But there are exceptions when a particular employee

frequently faces these problems, then there can be lies somewhere.

2.1.2 Effects of employee lateness

Some of the effects of employee lateness are;

(a) Low productivity

Employee lateness can negatively affect the productivity level of an organization. It

may negatively affect the performance of the late employee as well as the entire unit‟s

productivity (Blau, 1994).

(b) Low morale

In addition, employees who report late to work may reflect low motivation, discontent

at work and low commitment to the organization which may affect other employees

(Jamal, 1984). From the late employee‟s point of view, lateness behaviour may indicate

an initial withdrawal from work that may deteriorate toward more severe forms of

withdrawal such as absenteeism and turnover (Dolman-Singer, 1997).

(c) Cost

For the organization, lateness has many financial and non-financial costs. The effect of

an employee arriving late to work is the interruption and delay in the start of service for

any client and needs to be controlled. Additionally, management‟s responses to late

arrivals may include the recording of the late occurrences in the individual‟s file,

disciplinary reviews and outright punishment. In view of such responses, lateness could

indeed be considered a costly behaviour for the involved employee (Dolman-Singer,

1997).

2.1.3 Measures used in controlling employee lateness

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Below are some of the measures that management can effectively put in place to control

lateness as postulated by various authors.

(a) Time register

Most organisations use and keep registers to register latecomers with the time they

report to work. The purpose is to keep records, particularly of regular latecomers, and

to build a history of how the organisation goes about dealing with such late comers

(Squelch, 2000). It is very important if the register is kept at the manager‟s office

instead of the reception to make the exercise a success else employees will abuse the

exercise. Concerning using the register as a tool to minimise lateness in the

organisation, to effectively discourage lateness, organisations should not rush the

marking of registers but rather keep their registers open for a reasonable time

(recommended maximum 30 minutes) for employees to sign after which it will be

closed (Hallam and Roaf, 1995). Where employees miss the register within the

stipulated time and fail to provide an adequate explanation, it constitutes truancy, and

thus should be marked absent for that day even though they will and should face

disciplinary action.

(b) Punishment and counselling

Management can eliminate employee lateness sometimes through punishments and

counselling. There are many reasons why an employee will be late to work. Therefore,

counselling can bring forth these reasons for it to be solved. On the other hand, if the

reasons are not reasonable, then management can punish the employee (Greenberg,

1995).

(c) Strict policies

Human resources departments need to have strict policies regarding not only lateness,

but professional conduct as well. Managers need to reward good performance at work

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with bonuses and thanks. Also lateness must be attended to professionally, with

emphasis on helping the employee improve.

2.1.4 Challenges in controlling employee lateness

Inasmuch as organizations aspire to control lateness in organizations, there are

challenges that impede the smooth measure of control. It has been observed in

organizational behaviour literature and especially in the educational domain that

lateness is a variable related to general job attitudes of employees, such as

organizational justice and organizational commitment of staff to comply with the

directive (Bowers, 2001). Thus, inasmuch as the organisation tries to control lateness,

attitude and commitment of employees are paramount since they pose a challenge to

controlling such employees. It is worth noting that, a positive general attitude toward

the organization by an employee does not necessarily signify that the employee believes

it is important to appear regularly and timely at the workplace hence can pose a

challenge to controlling lateness (Koslowsky, 2009).

Voluntary absenteeism is a major contributory factor to controlling lateness in an

organisation. Sagie (1998) states that voluntary absenteeism which is under the direct

control of the employee and is frequently utilized for personal issues can be used as an

excuse by employees to become habitual late comers and involuntary absenteeism,

which is usually beyond the employee‟s immediate control such as unexpected

bereavement or happening, could also pose a challenge to controlling lateness. For

example an employee who hears a sudden death of a relative may want to pay

condolence to the bereaved family before proceeding to work and this is difficult for

management to control.

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2.2 Employee absenteeism

Many authors tend to give their opinions and explanation to what constitutes

absenteeism since absence behaviour continues to attract researchers and managers

because of its prevalence among employees in many organizations (Steel, 2003).

Absenteeism can be described as any failure of an employee of an organization to report

for or to remain at work as scheduled, regardless of the reason (Cascio, 2003). It has

also been explained in a broader perspective that, absenteeism can be viewed as part of

withdrawal syndrome where employees react to undesirable working conditions by

behaviours designed to distant themselves from work, including lateness and the intent

to leave the job (Johns, 2003). From the above, one theme that runs through all the

definition is that, once the employee avoids work voluntarily or involuntarily, it

constitutes absenteeism.

2.2.1 Types of employee absenteeism

There are three main different categories of absence according to Nel (2001), namely:

sick absence, authorized absence and unexcused absence. These three are discussed

below:

(i) Sick absence

This occurs when a person is absent due to a reported illness, whether the illness is

genuine or not. A company‟s policy will usually state at what stage a medical

certificate is required, example after two days off.

(ii) Authorized absence

This occurs when the employee is absent for any reason other than illness, and it is

accepted by management. Employees should be encouraged to seek permission before

14

hand if the situation allows for it so that alternative arrangements can be made for

replacement.

(iii) Unexcused absence

This is when an employee is absent without permission and does not even inform the

employer of such unauthorized absence. This is considered as unacceptable and should

not be tolerated by the company‟s management. Disciplinary procedures are usually

used to handle this problem.

2.2.2 Causes of employee absenteeism

Various causes of employee absenteeism have been postulated by various researchers,

some of these are discussed below;

(a) Low commitment to work

Individuals‟ commitment to work, according to the discovery of Wooden (1995) is one

of the most important factors that influence absenteeism is individuals‟ commitment to

the organization. Attendance of employees to work is influenced by the higher levels of

commitment to their organisation, meaning employees who are highly committed to

their organizations report to work regularly as compared to those with low levels of

commitment to their organisations.

Commitment to the organisation as well as the involvement of employees in their jobs

are factors that can predict absenteeism. This was revealed by a research conducted by

Blau (1986). Individuals who are highly committed to their organisations and highly

involved in their jobs display few cases of absenteeism at work as compared to

individuals with a low commitment to their organisation and little involvement in their

jobs.

(b) Personal characteristics

Two of the personal characteristics are discussed below;

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(i) Gender:

A research conducted by Steel and Rentsch (1995), found out that women will be absent

from work more than men. One reason is the traditional labour division in the family,

according to which women have more than an equal share in child raising and

housework. The second reason is the typically lower status of women‟s employment,

leading to a greater motivation to be absent from work (VandenHeuvel and Wooden,

1995). However, results pertaining to gender effect on absenteeism are not consistent.

In their study of American teachers, Scott and McClellan (1990) found that women

tended to be more absent on working days than men, but absenteeism frequency was not

different in the two genders.

(ii) Number of children:

Studies on family commitments showed that children and their ages affected

absenteeism. In an Australian study VandenHeuvel and Wooden (1995) found out that

married people who also had children were often late no matter their gender. Bridges

and Mumford (2001) also found that mothers whose children were younger than 2 years

were often late than their male counterparts in the same situation, but the situation

changed when their children grew older. Judge et al. (1997) also showed that the

number of children optimistically affected absenteeism because of family commitments

such as child care. Muchinsky (1977) also confirmed this finding.

(c) Occupational characteristics

The following are some of the occupational characteristics identified and discussed;

(i) Seniority:

Most findings on the relationship connecting seniority and absenteeism have not been

consistent. In past studies, Price (1995) reported both a negative relationship of

seniority with absenteeism and Kohler and Mathieu (1993) reported none at all.

16

However, in unionized workplaces, unions offer protection in the form of job security

that may reduce cost of absenteeism to the individual.

(ii) Position level:

Johns (1997), revealed that the higher an employee‟s position the lower his rate of

absenteeism. Schwarzwald et al., 1992 found that most employees who provide service

were absent because their promotions were delayed. Also, among health-care workers,

position of employees was one of the highest predictors as compared to other indicators

such as personal and occupational demographic variables (Goldberg and Waldman,

2000).

(iii) Salary:

Studies show that higher-salaried employees tend to be less absent. Winkelmann (1999)

found out that the salary of German employees did not have any relationship with

absenteeism and this was confirmed by Globerson and Ben-Yshai (2002) with regard to

Israeli teachers. Hackett (1990) showed that job satisfaction described the connection

between salary level and absenteeism.

2.2.3 Effects of employee absenteeism

Employee absenteeism could have effect of productivity and an organisation‟s financial

and administrative costs. These are discussed below;

(a) Decrease in productivity

When employees are absent from work, others would be required to work extra hours to

train new temporary replacements or relieve staff replacing the absent employee and

this can affect their overall productivity and output (Goldberg and Waldman, 2000).

(b) Financial cost

17

He also added that this could be additional cost associated with the payment of overtime

to those tasked to perform the duty of the absent worker. Also there is cost of re-

training or induction of the replacement workers in that particular post. In addition, the

company would also bear the wage costs of any replacement employees.

(c) Administrative costs

Administration will also spend time to recruit new replacements, reassign other

employees and these are cost to the organization. Additional management is required to

maintain administrative systems dealing with any control measures for absenteeism.

(Hackett, 1990).

2.2.4 Measures used in controlling absenteeism

Whilst some companies use disciplinary actions to curb the situation, some also use

incentives. Whichever option a company decides to use will depend on how important

the company considers the issue of absenteeism. These measures discussed below are

options available to organisations in controlling absenteeism according to various

researchers.

(i) Absence management programmes

Organizations can have disciplinary controls when cases of absenteeism become severe.

A system can be put in place to find out those who pretend to be sick when they are not,

for example asking them to provide an evidence from a Doctor confirming they are sick.

In a situation where their evidences are not satisfactory, then their salary may be

reduced or they will be made to forfeit their personal days such as leave (Poirier 2003)

(ii) Childcare

Organizations can create centres to help in the childcare of their employees to enable

them concentrate on work. In a study by Brown (1999), he revealed that a company

saved more than 2,500 lost days in one year, for creating a backup child-care program to

18

enable parents to send their kids for care rather than miss work days simply because

their babysitters could not show up. A corporate day care centre can help curb the issue

of absenteeism.

(iii) Incentives

The use of incentives to curb absenteeism is called the “carrot approach”. This

incentive system can be used in several ways and one is that employers pay employees

for any sick or off day not used at the end of every year. According to Neuborne 2003,

employers who used this approach confirmed that it worked for them. Some

organizations see this approach as too much cash invested and therefore rather pay for

perfect attendance. Other companies offer time off for perfect attendance each quarter

and a day‟s pay at the end of the year (Truman, 2003). Some companies also offer a

company party, a company picnic, or a corporate gift for perfect attendance (Poirier,

2003).

2.2.5 Challenges in controlling employee absenteeism

It is important to put measures in place to control absenteeism. However there are

certain factors that pose as a challenge to achieving this objective as many employees

put sort of legitimate reasons to prevent management from successfully controlling

absenteeism. Patton (2011) observed that, legitimacy predicted a host of reactions to

replicate absence scenarios, including judged responsibility, anger, sympathy, intention

to punish and intention to help. Many employees legitimately lie and absent themselves

from work in the quest of running their own errands. It can be ascertained that,

potential of legitimacy has been used by employees as a useful tool to absent

themselves from work and employees who saw absence as more legitimately reported

engaged in more absence (Johns, 2008). Other employees also used minor illnesses

19

which may not even affect them to legitimately absent themselves from work and they

turned to endorse such practices from others (Harvey and Nicholson 1999).

2.3 Labour turnover

Labour turnover is the rate at which an employer loses employees and replaces them.

Simply, it is "how long employees tend to stay" or "the rate of traffic through the

revolving door" (Wooden, 1995). The rate of labour turnover can be measured by

dividing the number of employees that are leaving the company by the total number of

employees of the company multiplied by hundred. High turnover becomes a

disadvantage when skilled workers leave and are replaced by unskilled workers. High

labour turnover in a company may be attributed to factors like, poor working conditions,

boredom at work place, poor job description, poaching and etc. (Kaye, 1999)

2.3.1 Types of labour turnover

Labour turnover can be grouped as internal and external. Internal labour turnover

occurs when current employees are promoted, new responsibilities are added to job

titles and bringing in entry-level employees due to company growth. External turnover

is when employees leave to other companies to seek jobs, raise families or enter

retirement. It has both positive and negative influences on an organisation. Positive

turnover creates new jobs due to a company's expansion, whiles negative turnover

demonstrates a contraction of company finances due to hard times (Neuborne, 2003)

2.3.2 Causes of labour turnover

The causes of labour turnover can be grouped into internal and external. These are

explained below;

(a) Internal causes

20

This is termed as the Peter‟s principle which states that as people get promoted to higher

levels in their jobs, they become less competent because doing well in one position does

not guarantee doing well in another. It simply means that as employees rise to the top,

they rise to their level of “incompetence”. (Wood and Macaulay, 1991).

(i) Organizational performance

Organizations that recognize themselves to be facing some difficulties economically

raises the spectre on its decision to lay-off some of its employees. In such cases,

employees are made to find employment in different organizations (Taylor 2002)

(ii) Structure of the organization

The decisions of turnover and the rate of turnover can be affected by employees‟

satisfaction with their existing jobs which is often influenced by several factors such as

the system of reward for employees, the organization‟s ability to get employees to

commit themselves to the organization as well as creating a feeling of shared aims and

goals within in the organization.

(iii) Job characteristics

The characteristics of a job as revealed by Brownell and Judi (1998) have stated that

employees in the hospitality sector are continuously faced with problems and

uncertainties about their jobs each day. According to Taylor (2002), some jobs are

naturally more attractive than others. There are several factors which affect the level of

attractiveness of jobs, some of which are the level of repetitiveness in the job, the

challenges involved, the changes that are encountered, benefits to be derived as well as

the degree of the sense of accomplishment. The job position is also an essential factor

which influences labour turnover just as the other factors.

(iv) Employees unrealized expectations

21

Job applicants‟ inadequate knowledge and skills about the job and their unrealized

expectations at the time of the reception of the job offer is also one of the causes of

labour turnover. Employees get disappointed and choose to leave their existing job

when they discover that their expectations are unrealistic.

(v) Demographic factors

In the examination of the factors that contribute to labour turnover Mitra et al. (1992)

found out that turnover was connected to certain conditions with regards to the features

of demography and biography of employees. This research played a crucial role to

explaining the performance of the labour market and makes possible the process of

linking workers to various organizations and the quality of the employment relationship

that exist. The trend of turnover has crucial possible effects for the establishment of

wages, work arrangements, success of the job and the increase in precise human capital

needed. The research again showed that lifestyle factors examples of which are

drinking or history of employment such as a frequent change in jobs can be used as an

implicit grounds to screen applicants as a means of checking such bio-data in way of

empiricism.

(vi) The individual

More to the already discussed causes of labour turnover are certain factors which are

particularly related to the individual and have the potential to affect the rate of turnover.

These factors consist of personal and character traits. Personal factors consist of

instances such as changes in the situation of the family, the desire to learn a new skill or

trade or an unsolicited offer. With reference to Mobley (1997), there are some aspects

of character traits which influence labour turnover in addition to the personal factors.

These character traits include the very factors that determine performance on the job,

negative behaviours such as absenteeism, production damages, tardiness and damages

22

to work equipment. These traits can be examined and used as a basis to screen

employees to find persons that will show a low level of turnover instances.

(vii) Complacency

The idea of complacency can also be said to be among reasons a final stimulator.

When an employee gets enough experience on a particular job, they feel their current

job is no more challenging and decide to find new jobs that suite their qualification and

experience (Mobley, 1997).

(b) External causes

External factors that cause turnover are present outside the organizational environment

and are not under the control of management (Nankervis et al., 1996). The

organization‟s policies, practices, strategies and human resource management plans can

be affected by external factors such as political, social and commercial environment.

Wood and Macaulay (1991) present the external causes of employee turnover in the

following ways:

(i) The economy

The existence of higher paying jobs is one of the major and common reasons employees

give as their basis for leaving their present employment. In a booming economy, the

existence of different jobs contributes to labour turnover, but this happens to be serious

during employees exit interviews.

(ii) Better pay in different jobs

A number of employees think they deserve to be paid an amount which is more than the

actual pay given to them by their employers. There is an intrinsic difference between

the amount individuals feel they should be paid for the work they do and the amount

organizations spend to compensate employees. In an additional argument, labour

23

turnover is experienced when the disparities between employees pay expectations and

organization‟s compensation becomes too wide and a different employment opportunity

emerges for employees. Pay refers to the wages, salary or compensation organizations

give to an employee in exchange of the services rendered to that organization. Gupta

and Shaw (2001) argued on pay to be the most important reason why employees are

members of an organization. Compensating employees with high possible wages is the

main and obvious way of dealing with the need for pay.

(iii) Pay increment in different organizations

One of the causes of disagreement between employers and their employees is the

shortage of reasonable payment distribution of wages and salaries (Kusluvan, 2003). It

is therefore essential to realize the significance of every job and get rid of factors that

are likely to bring about dissatisfaction to employees on their job. Phillips and Connell

(2003) in their conclusion stated that it is important to employ a method or system in

assessing jobs in order to give fair wages and salaries to employees. Considering the

fact that employees leave their jobs on their own without being dismissed by their

employers, it is the sole duty of employers to retain their employees. It is based on this

reason that employers should interview employees to examine their reasons for quitting

the job. The exit interview is likely to uncover particular information on the

employment conditions, conditions of employment of the competitive organization, the

level of quality of supervision as well as the training and selection procedures of the

organization.

(iv) A strong local or regional economy

In their further researches Phillips and Connell (2003) made a proposal that most

industrialized nations and a lot of developing countries have undergone a wide growth

in their economy. As the economy expands, growth in job opportunities will be existent

with the growth in the economy which gives a direct implication on the creation of new

24

job opportunities as a result for employees to leave their present job for different

employment.

(v) Low quality of employees overall

There is an increase in labour turnover in situations where the unemployment rate is low

due to the availability of more jobs according to Blotch (2001). He goes on to argue

that anytime there was a significant fall in the level of unemployment by a rate of 5% or

a lesser figure, it brings employers to face a serious problem of seeking employees to

fill vacant job positions in their organization. The degree of the problem is made worse

in situations where there is a decrease in the availability of employees with specific

skills.

2.3.3 Effects of labour turnover

Labour turnover has an important effect on the organization, the individual as well as

the management of the organization. Hiemstra (1990), states that considering the effect

of labour turnover on the organization, there is the possibility of an organization

accruing cost directly in the recruitment of new employees, low quality production

practices, decrease in production standards and a high cost in training and replacing

employees. Fair (1992) also gave a suggestion that there are several costs which come

with labour turnover. These consist of cost of separation of employees (exit interviews

and severance pay), cost of recruitments (advertising vacant positions and searching

fees), cost of selection (during interviews and checking of applicants references) cost of

hiring of employees (during induction and initial training) expenses incurred on

relocation, cost of working attires, cost involved in the loss of production which is often

connected with vacant positions not being occupied and the learning pace of new

employees. The author further stressed that it is possible for the skilled workers who

have quit their job to be given employment opportunity by competitive organizations in

the same industry.

25

The divulging of an organization‟s important information to competitive organizations

by employees who have left the job according to Ubeku (1975) is a serious effect of

labour turnover. The author furthermore noted that the unrealized training given to

workers who have quit the job can influence other workers in the organization to leave

their job and take employment from different organizations. .

Despite the negative impacts associated with the increase in the level of labour turnover,

such as the incurrence of costs by the organization, a break in the organizational plan

and existing projects as well as several challenges to the organization, labour turnover

impacts positively on the organization to some extent. These positive impacts are

derived in the replacing of employees who have quitted the job with new employees

who are likely to introduce new experiences, more knowledge, new practices and new

skills into the organization (Fair, 1992). Labour turnover has the potential of bringing a

renewal in all aspects of the organization. Though a high level of turnover is costly, a

low level in turnover can bring about rescuing losses. In addition to this, competent

employees who are given unsatisfactory compensation for the job they do get the

chance to replace employees with higher compensation for the same job. Turnover

lastly makes it possible for the organization to get rid of poor performing employees,

employees with low morale as well as employees who do not corporate with the

organization‟s rules and regulations (Ubeku 1975) .

2.3.4 Measures used in controlling labour turnover

Labour turnover can be remedied at its early stage before it becomes a serious problem

when the major signs are analyzed and acted upon. This makes it possible for the

organization to effect changes and improve decisions related to their employees as a

means of decreasing factors that influence labour turnover. According to Mobley

(1977), providing employees with a safe working environment and benefits can boost

26

the satisfaction of employees with their job which will help decrease the instances of

turnover in the organization.

Accessing the effect of labour turnover among employees, it is worth putting

appropriate measures and strategies in place to control it. Human resource management

practices have been recommended to management as potential control measures for

turnover, such as investment in training and development of employees, offering

organizational support in all aspects, adopting prudent recruitment and selection

processes in selecting job applicants, offering better career opportunities for employees

to aspire for (Hinkin and Tracey, 2000). There is a critical factor in making sure that,

employees are satisfied with their jobs through increased satisfaction. Controlling

labour turnover could be achieved through adopting measures to increase job

satisfaction and commitment among employees (Aksu, 2004). Employee relation

management approach is also key in controlling labour turnover among employees. It

has been ascertained that the role of employee relations practices and high levels of

labour turnover are seen as mitigating the achievement of broader business outcomes as

involvement in recruiting (including advertising), training, induction, growth and skill

development, and quality represent a direct cost to the organization (Hinkin and Tracey,

2006). It is clear from the above submissions that, the ability of firms to put appropriate

strategies in place right from recruitment and selection, on the job training till the

employee is at a retiring age is important in controlling labour turnover among

employees.

27

2.4 Conceptual framework

Figure 2.1 A diagram of conceptual framework

Source: Researcher’s construct

The study is looking at three withdrawal behaviours in the form of lateness, absenteeism

and labour turnover. These three withdrawal behaviours are interrelated. According to

Dolman-Singer (1997) lateness is an initial indication of an employee‟s withdrawal

from work which later deteriorates into more severe forms such as absenteeism and

labour turnover. This means that employees start withdrawing by reporting to work late

once in a while and then follow with a few cases of absenteeism and then resignation

follows. The researcher however has a different view with this assertion because an

employee reporting to work late could be attributed to many reasons such as their

distance from their various residence to work not necessarily showing signs of

withdrawal. These withdrawal behaviours however, when proper control measures are

put in place can reduce their negative effect on productivity. The challenge that

organisations would go through in maximising productivity is what the study seeks to

find out and identify how they can be controlled or prevented.

Employee

Withdrawal

Behaviours

Lateness

(causes)

Absenteeism

(causes)

Labour

turnover

(causes)

High

Productivity

Effective control

measures

a) Good working

conditions

b) Good human

resource

management

practices

c) Strict policies

etc.

28

CHAPTER THREE

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND ORGANIZATIONAL PROFILE

3.0 Introduction

This chapter answers the question on how data were collected and analyzed. It explains

the research design, sources of data, population, sampling technique, data collection

instruments, data analysis techniques and organizational profile of the Christ Apostolic

University College (CAUC), Kwadaso, Kumasi.

3.1 Research design

In this study, descriptive and explanatory research were used to answer the research

questions. According to Best and Khan (1998), descriptive research is concerned with

the conditions or relationships that exist, such as determining the nature of prevailing

conditions, practices and attitudes; opinions that are held; processes that are going on;

or trends that are developed. On the other hand, explanatory research seeks to know

„why‟, and to „explain‟. These were adopted because the researcher deemed it

appropriate to find out why these withdrawal behaviours exist and how they come

about, find out the effects they have on the organization, measures that can be used to

control them and some of the challenges organizations face in trying to control them.

3.2 Sources of data

Two sources of data were used for this research. These were primary and secondary.

3.2.1 Primary data

The primary sources of data were first-hand information collected from the field

through the administration of questionnaire and interview.

29

3.2.2 Secondary data

The secondary sources of data were information from books, journals and the internet.

3.3 Population

As far as this study was concerned, the target population was Staff and Management of

Christ Apostolic University College (CAUC). The population of fifty was categorized

as Management and Employees.

Table 3.1

Population of CAUC

Category Number

Management 2

Senior members 28

Senior staff 16

Junior staff 6

Total 52

3.4 Sample size

According to Saunders et al. (2009) with a population size of fifty, to gain a 1% margin

of error, the total population should be used. Therefore the researcher decided to use all

the 50 employees and 2 management personnel. The entire population was used for this

research implying a census.

3.5 Sampling techniques

This study used purely census. This sampling technique was used in the selection of the

sample for this study (Saunders et al. 2009). The census sampling technique is where

the entire population is used by the researcher. This sampling technique was adopted in

30

this study because the population was few and manageable. The researcher decided to

use this technique to avoid the complications associated with sample selection.

3.6 Data collection instruments

Data collection involves the use of various techniques to collect or gather information

necessary for the research. The tools were questionnaire and face-to-face structured

interview

3.6.1 Questionnaire

The researcher used questionnaire (Appendix A) as the main instrument for the

collection of data for the research. The reason for using questionnaire was that it is the

most effective instrument for data collection as far as field survey is concerned. This

was self-administered to respondents.

3.6.2 Structured interview

The researcher interviewed the President and the Registrar of CAUC using a structured

interview guide (Appendix B) consisting of seven questions with each interview lasting

for an average of twenty minutes.

3.7 Data analysis techniques

The data collected from the study was analyzed using the Statistical Product for Service

Solutions (SPSS). Data collected using the questionnaires were analyzed using

descriptive statistics and the data from the interviews were analyzed using content

analysis. Statistical Product for Service Solutions (SPSS) software was used to run

analysis collected from the field. The results from the analysis were presented using the

charts (bar and pie charts) and frequency tables. The use of the chart gave a pictorial

and graphical representation and understanding of the result at a glance. In predicting

31

the effect of these withdrawal behaviours (lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover) on

productivity, a simple multiple regression analysis was employed.

3.8 Profile of Christ Apostolic University College

The Christ Apostolic University College (CAUC), Kumasi is an initiative of the Christ

Apostolic Church International (CACI), with its headquarters in Accra, Ghana. It is

incorporated and operates as a tertiary institution with the status of a University College

offering degree and certificate programmes with the authorization of the National

Accreditation Board (NAB). It is affiliated to Kwame Nkrumah University of Science

and Technology (KNUST) and University of Cape Coast (UCC). The motto of the

University College is “Shining as Light; Holding forth the Word”.

3.9 Brief history of the CAUC

The Christ Apostolic University College (CAUC) started as a Bible Training Centre in

1973 at Bantama-Kumasi. The Centre commenced with fifteen students for a two-year

Diploma in Theology program. However, only eleven of them completed. In 1977 it

was closed down due to reasons beyond control.

In 1986, it was re-opened at Kwadaso in Kumasi and renamed Bible Training Institute

(BTI), this time to run a one-year Diploma course in Theology. Within that period, 300

students graduated from the Bible Training Institute. Most of them are currently

serving in various positions and areas within the Church (CACI) whilst others are

serving in other Pentecostal Churches.

As part of the corporate vision of the Christ Apostolic Church International, that is, to

help train people to meet the human resource needs of the church, the country and the

world at large, there was the need to diversify the programmes and courses run at the

Institute. Consequently, at an Emergency Ministerial and General Council Meeting

32

held at Bunso Cocoa College in the Eastern Region of Ghana, it was unanimously

approved that the Bible Training Institute be upgraded to a University College status,

hence was renamed Christ Apostolic University College. The University College was

granted accreditation in the year 2010.

4.0 Vision and mission

The vision and mission of CAUC are;

Vision:

The vision of CAUC is to be a distinguished seat of learning for its Academic quality

that emphasizes integrity, intellectual achievement and employability.

Mission statement:

As a Christian university in the Pentecostal tradition, the Christ Apostolic University

College (CAUC) exists to provide excellent student-centred undergraduate and graduate

education that seeks to integrate the intellectual, spiritual, moral, ethical and social

development of students and through university extension, the CAUC will provide

continuing education for students to improve their job skills, marketability and enhance

the quality of their lives.

4.1 Staffing situation

The University College currently has twenty-five (25) non-teaching staff comprising of

senior members, senior staff and junior staff who are in charge of the day-to-day

administration of the University College. It also has thirteen (13) full-time lecturers and

twelve (12) part-time lecturers in the four (4) departments it operates currently which

33

are; Business Administration, Hospitality and Tourism Management, Information

Communication Technology (ICT), Accounting Information Systems (AIS) and

Theology.

Table 3.2

Staffing situation

Category Number

Management 2

Teaching staff (full-time) 13

Teaching staff (part-time) 12

Non-teaching staff 25

Total 52

4.2 Main activity of CAUC

As an educational institution, CAUC‟s main activity is providing tertiary education to

students in various disciplines such as;

A. BSc. Business Administration with options in;

i. Human resource management

ii. Accounting

iii. Procurement and supply chain management

iv. General management

B. BSc. Hospitality management

C. BSc. Tourism management

D. BSc. Accounting information systems (AIS)

E. BSc. Information communication technology (ICT)

F. BA. Theology

34

The CAUC is working on introducing programs in Education by September 2014.

Some of these programmes are;

(i) B.Ed. Accounting

(ii) B.Ed. Management

(iii) B.Ed. Economics

(iv) B.Ed. Basic Education

Although a young institution, the canker of these withdrawal behaviours (lateness,

absenteeism and labour turnover) are seen to be prevailing. Some staff of CAUC report

to work late and are sometimes absent without permission. Four employees have

resigned and the prevalence of these withdrawal behaviours (lateness and absenteeism)

meant that more cases of labour turnover should be anticipated. It is important therefore

to know why the employees are exhibiting these withdrawal behaviours as these

behaviours can be attributed to many reasons or causes. This will enable management

come out with solutions that can at least reduce their effects on the organization if not

able to curb them completely. The best way of doing this is what this research seeks to

find out.

35

CHAPTER FOUR

DATA PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS

4.0 Introduction

In this chapter, data gathered from field surveys are presented with the use of Statistical

Package for Service Solutions (SPSS). The use of this statistical tool is based on its

simplicity in application and clarity of presentation. The survey was conducted on a

total of 50 employees of Christ Apostolic University College (CAUC) out of which

forty three questionnaires were received representing 86% response rate.

4.1 Analysis of Demography of Respondents

Table 4.3.1

Age of Respondents

Responses Frequency Percentage

21-30 13 30.2

31-40 19 44.2

41-50 5 11.6

51 years and above 6 14.0

Total 43 100

Source: Field survey 2014

Majority of the respondents and therefore the staff of CAUC were between the ages of

31 and 40 years which constituted 19 (44%) of the entire population. This was followed

by those between the ages of 21 and 30 years which constituted 13 (30%) of the entire

population. Only 5 (11%) were between 41 and 50 years and 6 (14%) were between 41

and 50 years. Six representing 14% were 51 years and above. A conclusion can

therefore be drawn that 32 (74%) of the employees were 40 years and below which

meant CAUC had a youthful workforce which could lead to good performance

contributing to high productivity. The general perception is that employees in their

youthful years will work harder than old and weak employees.

36

Table 4.4.2

Educational background of respondents


MSLC 4 9.3

SSSCE/WASSCE 1 2.3

Diploma (HND) 4 9.3

Degree 8 18.6

Masters 25 58.1

Others 1 2.3

Total 43 100


Majority of the employees constituting 25 (58%) of the total respondents were 2nd

degree (Masters) holders, 8 (19%) had 1st degrees, 4 (9%) held Diploma (HND), 1

(2.3%) held SSSCE/WASSCE and 4 (9%) held MSLC. In all 33 (77%) of the

respondents had 1st and 2nd degrees which also make the workforce strong. It is

inferred that majority of the employees have second degrees (masters) which is very

good for a tertiary institution. This could also mean that, the teaching staff have the

minimum requirement by the National Accreditation Board (NAB) to lecture.

Table 4.5.3

Rank of employees


Senior Member 23 53.5

Senior Staff 14 32.6

Junior Staff 6 14.0

Total 43 100


Majority of the respondents, 23 (54%) were senior members, 14 (33%) were senior staff

and 6 (14%) were junior staff. It could be inferred that majority of those who had their

masters had been promoted to the rank that they deserved. From table 4.4.2 on page 37,

respondents had their masters and from this current table, 23 of them were senior

37

members. The remaining 2 who are not senior members yet may have just completed

their masters programme or there was no vacancy created yet. It could therefore be

concluded that CAUC promotes staff when they are due.

Figure 4.2.4 A pie chart showing category of respondents


The teaching staff were 22 (51%) of the population and the non-teaching staff were 21

(49%). This is normal with an educational institution since the teaching staff are the

core staff because the CAUC‟s main business is education. In the near future the

difference would be greater as student numbers increase. It can therefore be concluded

that CAUC has enough teaching staff to effectively teach the students.

Frequency, Teaching Staff,

22, 51%

Frequency, Non-teaching, 21, 49%

Category of staff

38

Figure 4.3.5 A pie chart showing gender of respondents


The female employees were dominated by the male counterparts. The males were 27

(63%) of the entire respondents and the females were 16 (37%). The general perception

that males are more into academia than females can be validated by this finding. Some

few years ago, our traditional set up believed that the kitchen was the place for women.

This perception is changing now.

Figure 4.4.6 A bar chart showing marital status of respondents


Most of the respondents were married. The figure above shows that 26 (61%) were

married and 17 (40%) were single. There is a general perception that single employees

Frequency , Male, 27, 63%

Frequency , female, 16, 37%

Gender of Respondents

Frequency, Married, 26

Frequency, Single, 17

Chart Title Married Single

39

tend to have much time for their job than married employees because they do not have

other family responsibilities. With majority of the employees married, the assumption

is that they are likely to exhibit lateness and absenteeism due to family responsibilities

if this perception is true and this could affect productivity in the long run. This

confirms the finding of VandenHeuvel and Wood (1995) that married employees who

are parents tend to be absent no matter their gender.

Table 4.6.7

Respondents’ number of dependents


None 15 34.9

1-3 13 30.2

3-6 13 30.2

7-10 2 4.7

Total 43 100


Only 2 (5%) of the respondents had between 7 and 10 dependents. Majority, 15 (35%)

did not have any dependents whiles 13 (30%) had between 1 and 3 dependents and 13

(30%) also had between 3 and 6 dependents. Employees may exhibit some of these

withdrawal behaviours especially in the form of lateness and absenteeism if their

income levels are not enough to cater for themselves and their dependents. These

employees may exhibit these kind of behaviours due to low morale. Also, if dependents

in this case are children, then it will also affect reporting time and punctuality of

employees. This is supported by the finding of Judge et al., (1997) that number of

children affected absenteeism positively.

40

Table 4.7.8

Income level


GH¢200.00 – GH¢500.00 7 16.3

GH¢500.00-GH¢1000.00 13 30.2

GH¢1,000.00-GH¢2,000.00 5 11.6

GH¢2,000.00 and above 18 41.9

Total 43 100


The above table shows that, 18 (42%) of the respondents received GH¢2000.00 and

above and 13 (30%) received between GH¢500.00-GH¢1,000.00, 7 (16%) received

GH¢200.00-GH¢500.00 and finally 5 (12%) of them received between GH¢1,000.00-

GH¢2,000.00. Some of the employees may be affected by low morale if they are not

satisfied with their income level and therefore decide to leave the organisation, come

late or absent themselves once in a while if their morale gets affected. Whether the

morale of the respondents were affected or not is probed into in table 4.25.24 on page

56.

4.2 Causes of lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover

Table 4.8.9

Official reporting time to work


Before 8 o‟clock 12 27.9


After 9 o‟clock 1 2.3

Total 43 100


Majority of the respondents, 30 (70%) said that the reporting time to work was before 9

o‟clock a.m. and 12 (28%) said it was before 8 o‟clock a.m. only 1 (2%) said it was

after 9 o‟clock. However, the interview with Management revealed that reporting time

to work was 8 o‟clock a.m. This implies that employees had different views of the

reporting time and this could be attributed to the fact that official reporting time was not

41

properly communicated to employees. However, Management said that though it was

not stated in their letters of appointment, it was communicated to them on their first day

at work. Most employees generally may pay attention and attach more importance to

written and documented rules than rules that are communicated verbally. It can

therefore be inferred that since this is not documented, employees may not be attaching

importance and seriousness to it.

Table 4.9.10

Respondents’ reporting time to work




After 9 o‟clock 4 9.3

Total 43 100


Most of the respondents constituting 21 (49%) stated that they reported to work before 9

o‟clock in the morning and 18 (42%) also stated that they reported to work before 8

o‟clock in the morning whilst 4 (9%) said they reported after 9 o‟clock in the morning.

The implication was that all employees who reported before 9 o‟clock and after 9

o‟clock still reported after 8 o‟clock and therefore it can be concluded that 25 (58%) of

employees were reporting after 8 o‟clock and therefore were reporting late to work.

With reference to the previous table, it can be said that employees were reporting late

because the official reporting time had not been properly communicated to them.

Table 4.10.11

Distance of respondents’ residence from work


Walking distance 7 16.3

30 mins walk or drive 13 30.2

1 hour walk or drive 12 27.9

More than 1 hour walk or drive 11 25.6

Total 43 100


42

Among the respondents, 7 (16%) of them stayed close to the CAUC, 13 (30%) of them

used 30 minutes driving or walking to work, 12 (28%) of them also spent 1 hour

walking or driving to work and 11 (26%) of them spent 1 hour or more driving or

walking to work. It can be concluded that 23 (54%) of the respondents spent 1 hour or

more walking or driving to work, which meant that more than 50% of the employees

stayed far from the University College which could be a reason why they were reporting

late to work.

Table 4.11

Official reporting time * Distance of employees’ residence from work

Distance of employees residence from work

Official

reporting time

Walking

Distance

30 mins

walk or

drive

1 hr walk

or drive

More than 1

hour walk or

drive

Total

before 8 o‟clock 2 4 3 3 12

before 9 o‟clock 5 9 8 8 30

after 9 o‟clock 0 0 1 0 1

Total 7 13 12 11 43


A cross tabulation of respondents‟ distance from work and official reporting time to

work as shown above, revealed that amongst the 31 respondents who reported to work

after 8 o‟clock a.m., 5 of them stayed a walking distance from the College, 9 of them

had to walk or drive 30 minutes, 9 of them had to drive or walk for one hour and 8 of

them had to walk or drive for more than 1 hour before getting to work as shown below.

It is therefore confirmed that majority of them were reporting late because they stayed

far from the CAUC. The 5 respondents who stay a walking distance and yet report

after 8 o‟clock may have other reasons apart from distance.

43

Table 4.12.12

Mode of getting to work


By foot 9 20.9

By public 17 39.5

By own vehicle 17 39.5

Total 43 100


A look at respondents‟ mode of getting to work showed that 17 (40%) of the staff used

their own vehicles to work and same 17 (40%) used public transport as a means to

work. Nine of them constituting 21% came to work on foot meaning they stayed very

close to the University College or maybe could not afford transportation. A cross

tabulation of respondents‟ mode of getting to work and their reporting time revealed

that out of the 25 respondents who reported to work after 8 o‟clock, 7 of them came on

foot, 8 of them by public transport and 10 of them by their own vehicle. Therefore the

tendency of the 15 respondents who came to work by foot and public transport to be late

is higher than those who used their own vehicles. Such employees may always provide

justifiable reasons for being late or absent.

Table 4.13.13

Number of times respondents are absent from work in a month


None 29 67.4

Once 13 30.2

Thrice 1 2.3

Total 43 100


Most of the respondents constituting 29 (67%) said they often go to work a whole

month without absenting themselves, 13 (30%) of them said they were sometimes

absent once in a month and 1 (2%) agreed that they were sometimes absent 3 times in a

month. This means that taking a normal month, 14 (33%) employees were likely to

44

absent themselves from work which can affect productivity greatly. Whether they seek

permission or not is discussed in the next table.

Table 4.14.14

Whether respondents seek permission when absent


Yes 21 48.8

No 2 4.7

N/A 20 46.5

Total 43 100


Out of the 43 respondents, 21 (49%) of the respondents said that they sought permission

before being absent and 2 (5%) did not seek permission before absenting themselves.

This meant that, 2 (5%) did not give management the room to prepare for their absence

which could affect productivity. This type of absenteeism is an unexcused one which

according to Nel (2001) is unacceptable and should not be tolerated by management.

Table 4.15.15

How long respondents intend to work with CAUC


Less than 5 years 16 37.2

More than 5 years 8 18.6

For as long as the College decides to keep me 19 44.2

Total 43 100


On the question of how long respondents intended to work with the CAUC, 16 (37%) of

the total respondents said they were prepared to work with the CAUC for less than 5

years which meant that the CAUC should be prepared for labour turnover issues in the

near future. Also, 8 (19%) of them were prepared to work with the CAUC for more

than 5 years meaning 6 years and beyond and 19 (44%) were also willing to remain

45

with the CAUC for as long as their services were employed. This implies that CAUC

should be prepared for high labour turnover issues in the near future and make plans to

prevent them or fill those vacancies as soon as they occur.

The observation here is that, prevention may be a bit difficult because staff in this

category, that is the 16 (37%) who wish to work with CAUC for less than 5 years may

not want to leave because of conditions of service but for personal reasons such as

setting up their own businesses, exploring other sectors, changing their environments

among others. They seem to have their own programme and schedules before joining

the CAUC.

Table 4.16.16

Low morale


Strongly agree 15 34.9

Agree 10 23.3

Neutral 5 11.6

Disagree 7 16.3

Strongly disagree 6 14.0

Total 43 100


Majority of the respondents, constituting 15 (35%) of the respondents strongly agreed

that they reported to work late or were absent due to low morale, 10 (23%) also agreed

to this fact. Also, 5 (12%) were neutral, meaning they were not sure of their stand. A

total of 7 (16%) disagreed and 6 (14%) strongly disagreed. In all 25 (58%) of the total

respondents agreed that they reported to work late or were sometimes absent because

they had low morale.

46

A lot of causes can be attributed to low morale among employees but most of the time,

it was as a result of poor working conditions. This was however probed into as in table

4.25.24 on page 56. Low morale can also be an important cause of labour turnover.

Table 4.17.17

Emergency e.g. sickness, accidents, poor weather conditions



Agree 16 37.2

Neutral 8 18.6

Disagree 6 14.0


Total 43 100


Out of the 43 respondents, 11 (26%) strongly agreed that they reported to work late or

were absent because of emergency situations whiles 16 (37%) agreed and 8 (19%) were

neutral. A total of 6 (14%) disagreed and 2 (5%) strongly disagreed to the fact that they

were late of absent due to emergency situations. In all, 27 (63%) agreed to the fact that

staff reported late or were absent from work due to emergency situations such as

sickness, accidents and poor weather conditions among others. Mostly, such situations

are beyond the control of the employee and little can be done by them to prevent it

hence it affects their reporting time to work.

Table 4.18.18

Other circumstances e.g. car problems



Agree 22 51.2

Neutral 6 14.0

Disagree 5 11.6


Total 43 100


47

For other circumstances such as car problems, 7 (16%) strongly agreed, 22 (51%)

agreed, 6 (14%) were neutral, 5 (12%) disagreed and 3 (7%) strongly disagreed.

Majority, 29 (68%) agreed to the statement. These other circumstances could include

issues like childcare, sudden death of a relative among others. When the employee feels

it is beyond his or her control, it may result in lateness or absenteeism.

Table 4.19.19

Respondents’ idea of their contribution to productivity



Agree 2 4.7

Neutral 13 30.2

Disagree 4 9.3


Total 43 100


Reacting to the statement of how they thought about their contribution to productivity, 3

(7%) strongly agreed that they were important and without them there would be no

productivity at CAUC and 2 (5%) agreed. A number of them constituting 13 (30%) of

the total respondents were neutral and did not make their stance clear. Four of them

forming 9% disagreed and 21 (49%) strongly disagreed. At least 5 (12%) agreed to this

statement.

Employees who fall in the 5 (12%) category may become arrogant as postulated by

Blau, 1994. They may start believing that their work cannot be done by anyone else

and therefore will not obey rules. In such a case, they may start reporting late or

absenting themselves from work which would vindicate Blau‟s (1994) finding that

employees who feel they are important start disobeying rules. This also leads to

complacency. They begin to believe that they are not being compensated well for their

expertise or their current job is not challenging and therefore decide to look elsewhere.

48

This finding also confirms Mobley‟s (1997) finding that employees become complacent

when they gain enough experience on a particular job.

Table 4.20

Educational background * I feel very important, without me, there will be no

productivity

I feel am very important, without me, there will be no

productivity

Educational

background

Strongly

agree

Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly

disagree

Total

MSLC 0 1 0 0 3 4

SSSCE/WASSCE 0 0 0 1 0 1

Diploma (HND) 0 0 2 0 2 4

Degree 0 1 2 0 5 8

Masters 3 0 9 2 11 25

Others 0 0 0 1 0 1

Total 3 2 13 4 20 43


A cross tabulation of educational background and feeling important at the workplace

revealed that 1 MLSC holder agreed that he was important and that without his services,

productivity would be low at CAUC. 1 Degree holder also agreed and two were neutral.

3 Masters holders strongly agreed.

These employees may be performing crucial roles that make them feel that their work

contributes more to productivity at CAUC no matter their educational background.

Such a situation could lead to cases of labour turnover. As Mobley (1997) found out

these employees may start feeling that their current job is no more challenging and

decide to look elsewhere for other jobs. In this case, they may not be planning to leave

but they may feel complacent and start disobeying rules as Blau (1994) stated.

49

It could be inferred from the table that the higher one‟s educational qualification, the

more one feels important in the organisation all other things being equal as more of the

masters holders agreed to this.

Table 4.21.20

Flexible working schedule



Agree 8 18.6

Neutral 9 20.9

Disagree 7 16.3


Total 43 100


Out of the total respondents, 11 (26%) said they reported to work late or were absent

due to their flexible working schedule and 8 (19%) also agreed making a total of 19

(44.2%). Also, 9 (21%) were neutral, 7 (16%) disagreed and 8 (19%) strongly

disagreed.

The 19 (44.2%) may comprise of Lecturers who report to the CAUC only when they

had lectures. In their case they report when it is time for a particular lecture and when

they do not have any lecture, they may not show up at all.

Table 4.22.21

Low salary levels



Agree 16 37.2

Neutral 3 7.0

Disagree 1 2.3


Total 43 100

50


When asked what conditions will cause them to leave the service of CAUC, 20 (47%)

strongly agreed that low salaries would be a factor and 16 (37%) also agreed making the

total of those who agreed 36 (84%). Only 3 (7%) were neutral, 1 (2%) disagreed and 3

(7%) strongly disagreed. A total of 36 (84%) were in agreement that low salaries would

cause them to leave.

The implication is that, if the CAUC has low salary levels, very soon, a total of 36

(84%) will leave for other institutions. Wood and Macauley (1991) said better pay in

other organisations was an external cause of labour turnover. This means that once

other competitors in the industry are willing to pay higher for their services, they would

leave the service of the CAUC. Whether employees are actually satisfied with their

salary levels is yet to be ascertained.

Table 4.23.22

No opportunity for advancement



Agree 13 30.2

Neutral 5 11.6

Disagree 5 11.6


Total 43 100


Still on the question of what will cause them to leave the CAUC, 18 (42%) strongly

agreed that they would leave CAUC if there were no opportunities for advancement

whiles 13 (30%) agreed. Five of them constituting 12% did not take any specific

stance, 5 (12%) disagreed and 2 (5%) strongly disagreed. In all, 31 (72%) agreed. This

51

implies that some of the staff of CAUC think that they will not have the opportunity to

move to higher levels in the organization. This is no motivation to staff.

Table 4.24.23

Delayed promotion



Agree 20 46.5

Neutral 7 16.3

Disagree 3 7.0


Total 43 100


Further on the question of what will cause them to leave the service of the CAUC, 10

(23%) respondents strongly agreed that they would leave if their promotion was

delayed, 20 (47%) also agreed. Out of the respondents, 7 (16%) were neutral, 3 (7%)

disagreed and 3 (7%) strongly disagreed. In all 70% agreed to this statement. This

implies that CAUC has to put in place proper methods and procedures of promoting

staff and this should be known to the employees. Unless employees perceive this

process as fair, they will not be happy and motivated.

Table 4.25.24

Respondents’ opinion of causes of low morale at CAUC


Low salary 33 76.7

Inadequate retention plans 8 18.6

No opportunities for progression 2 4.7

Total 43 100


Majority of the respondents, 33 (77%) agreed that their low morale was caused by low

salaries, 8 (19%) said it was as a result of inadequate retention plans and 2 (5%) said it

was due to the fact that there were no opportunities for progression. Though the other

52

responses; inadequate retention plans and opportunities for progression should all be

given attention, the issue of low salaries should be looked at critically. Below is a cross

tabulation of respondents‟ income level and the degree to which they are affected by

low morale.

Table 4.26

Low morale * Income level

Income level

Low morale GH¢200.00 –

GH¢500.00

GH¢500.00-

GH¢1,000.00

GH¢1,000.00-

GH¢2,000.00

GH¢2000

and above

Total

Strongly agree 2 5 1 7 15

Agree 1 2 2 5 10

Neutral 2 0 0 3 5

Disagree 2 3 0 2 7

Strongly

disagree

0 3 2 1 6

Total 7 13 5 18 43


Amongst the respondents, 2 of them receiving a salary between GH¢ 200.00-GH¢

500.00 strongly agreed that they had low morale towards work and 1 person agreed.

Five respondents within GH¢ 500.00- GH¢ 1,000.00 salary range also strongly agreed

that they had low morale towards their work and 2 of them agreed. For salary earners in

the range of GH¢ 1,000.00 – GH¢ 2000.00, 1 person strongly agreed and 2 agreed. For

those earning GH¢ 2000.00 and above, 7 strongly agreed and 5 agreed. A total of 25

respondents agreed that they were not satisfied with what they were earning currently at

the CAUC out of the 43 respondents.

In table 4.16.16 on page 48, 25 (58%) of the respondents had agreed that they reported

late to work or were sometimes absent because their morale was low. In table 4.22.21

on page 54 majority constituting 33 (77%) agreed that low salaries were the main cause

of their low morale. This means that if CAUC is not able to increase salaries soon,

there is the possibility of losing about 36 (84%) of employees to other competitors in

53

the industry. This confirms the argument of Gupta and Shaw (2001) that pay was the

most important reason why employees were members of an organization.

4.3 Effects of lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover on productivity at

Christ Apostolic University College

The effect of lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover on productivity was predicted

by regression analysis. The results are discussed below.

Figure 4.5.28 A pyramid showing the agreement of respondents


Majority of the respondents 41 (95%) agreed that lateness, absenteeism and labour

turnover were having an effect on productivity, meanwhile 2 (5%) disagreed. The

implication here is that, 95% of the employees when educated on the degree of negative

effect their attitudes are having on productivity may be willing to help improve it by

changing their attitudes. The 5% may remain adamant to any form of education once

they do not believe and accept that their attitudes are affecting productivity negatively.

Below is a regression analysis on the effects of these withdrawal behaviours

establishing the degree of the effects on productivity at CAUC.

Frequency, Yes , 41

Frequency, No, 2

Agreement of respondents Yes No

54

Table 4.27

Regression analysis

Independent variable (Dependent variable) Productivity or

performance of employees at CAUC

R R2 B Sig

Constant (a) .384a .384

a 1.108 .000

Not meeting deadlines (X1) .138 .004

Low commitment (X2) .125 .003

Postpone assignments (X3) .161 .003

Low morale (X4) .203 .002

Low salaries (X5) .222 .000

Delayed promotion (X6) .201 .004


R represents the correlation or relationship between the dependent and the independent

variables

R2 represents how much of the dependent variable can be explained by the independent

variables

B represents the coefficients of the independent variables

Sig. represents the statistical significance level of the model (the acceptable level of

significance for this research was 0.05)

The output of the table 4.3.28 above represents the multiple regressions to establish the

effect of lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover on productivity at Christ Apostolic

University College (CAUC)

The regression equation was therefore y = a + b1X1 + b2X2 + b3X3 + b4X4 + b5X5 +

b6X6. When the values from the table are computed, the equation becomes

Y = 1.108 + .038(X1) + .125 (X2) + .061 (X3) + .203 (X4) + .222 (X5) + .121 (X6)

From the analysis above, it was realized that the independent variables had a

relationship with productivity. The correlation value (R) was .384 (when the correlation

55

value falls between .30 and .70, it is considered a moderate relationship). The value

was also positive which indicates that when the independent variable increases,

productivity also increases and when independent variable decreases, productivity also

decreases. The R2 value indicates that 38.4% (.384) of productivity could be explained

using the independent variables.

It was realized that the coefficient of employees not meeting deadlines was .038. This

meant that all other things being equal, when the other independent variables, low

commitment, postpone assignments, low morale, low salaries and delayed promotion

were held constant, productivity would increase by 3.8% if there was a 100%

improvement in meeting deadlines. This was statistically significant with a significance

value of .004 (0.004 < 0.05).

This meant that if employees of CAUC were able to report to work early and meet

deadlines, productivity would increase from its current level by 4%

It was also realized that a coefficient of “low commitment” of employees was .125.

This meant that all other things being equal, when the other independent variables, not

meeting deadlines, postpone assignments, low morale, low salaries and delayed

promotion were held constant; productivity would increase by 12.5% if there was a

100% improvement in “commitment”. This was statistically significant from the

research with a significant value of .003 (.003 < 0.05).

This meant that if employees of CAUC became sure of staying longer or shorter and

their commitment increased, productivity would increase by 13%

“Postponement of assignments” had a coefficient of .061. This meant that all other

things being equal, when the other independent variables, not meeting deadlines, low

commitment, low morale, low salaries and delayed promotion were held constant,

56

productivity would increase by 6% if there was a 100% improvement in “postponement

of assignments”. It was statistically significant with a significant value of .003 (.003 <

.05)

This meant that if employees of CAUC stopped postponing assignments, productivity

would increase by 6%.

Low morale also had a coefficient of .203. This meant that all other things being equal,

when the other independent variables, not meeting deadlines, low commitment,

postpone assignments, low salaries and delayed promotion were held constant;

productivity would increase by 20% if there was a 100% improvement in morale. Its

statistical significance was .002 (.002 < 0.05)

This meant that when the appropriate measures were put in place to increase the morale

of employees, productivity would increase by 20%.

The fifth independent variable, low salaries, had a coefficient of .222 which meant that

all other things being equal, holding all other independent variables, not meeting

deadlines, low commitment, postpone assignments, low morale and delayed promotion

were held constant, productivity would increase by 22% if there was a 100%

improvement in salaries. Its statistical significance was .000 (.000 < .05)

The implication was that, if salaries were increased, productivity would increase by

22%.

The last independent variable, which is delayed promotion, had a coefficient of .121.

All other things being equal, productivity would increase by 12% if other independent

variables, not meeting deadlines, low commitment, postpone assignments, low salaries

and low morale were held constant and there was a 100% improvement in promotion. It

had a statistical value of .004 (.004 < .05) which made it statistically significant.

57

The effects of the three withdrawal behaviours under study lateness, absenteeism and

labour turnover on productivity at CAUC, has been established in the analysis above.

Looking at the margins they can add to productivity, it is very important for

management of the CAUC to put in place good measures to prevent or manage them so

as to improve productivity.

4.4 Challenges Management is facing in controlling lateness, absenteeism and

labour turnover

In an interview with management, the following were revealed;

4.4.1 Official reporting time

Management informed that official reporting time to work at CAUC was 8 o‟clock a.m.

to 5 o‟clock p.m. from Monday to Friday.

4.4.2 Monitoring attendance of employees

On the question of how attendance was monitored and its effectiveness, Management

said that an attendance register was kept in an office where the administrative staff had

to sign when they reported to work. For the teaching staff, they also had an attendance

form that students were expected to complete for them after each lecture. These forms

were submitted to their Heads of Department at the end of every week which helped

them to check their attendance. For part-time lecturers, the forms were attached to their

claim forms before payments were made.

Management said they had realized that the attendance register system was not very

effective because the time was sometimes being manipulated by both students and staff.

Also the attendance system was difficult when it came to analysis because it had to be

done manually.

58

4.4.3 Compensation of employees

When asked about employee compensation, they admitted that their salary levels were

low as compared to other sister private university colleges. This confirms the position

of the employees on the issue of low morale and low salary levels.

4.4.4 Solution to compensation issues

On a follow up question of how they were planning to solve it, they stated that they had

some plans underway to improve their student numbers which could help them improve

salaries and therefore motivate employees to stay longer. They said their other

competitors were able to pay better because they had been in existence for long and had

greater student numbers which helped them to pay their employees better.

4.4.5 Labour turnover

Touching on labour turnover, they admitted that about four employees had left their

employment since the CAUC started and they will not be surprised to have more of

such cases. They believed that the main motivation was salary and once they were able

to work harder to increase salary levels, cases of labour turnover would reduce to the

minimal.

Apart from the issues discussed above, management also mentioned the following as

challenges they were facing;

4.4.6 Justifiable reasons

Management also added that most of the times, employees took advantage of

emergency cases to attend to their personal errands. Employees instead of giving prior

notice and seek for approval before absenting themselves or reporting late would call

rather on that very day stating how urgent the issue was and why they could not give

prior notice which made it difficult for management to plan for their absence. Examples

of such emergency situations were the death of a relative, sick child, having problems

59

with where to leave children for example when attendants did not report for work on a

particular day.

They also felt that, sometimes reasons for absenteeism and or lateness were within the

control of individuals and some were simply beyond their control. For instance an

employee‟s car breaking down on his/her way to work did not mean that he/she could

not pick a taxi to work comparing this to an employee who prepared for work and there

was a heavy downpour almost all day. In the two scenarios, management believed that

the first employee could have controlled the situation but the second could not have

however, both of them would have good reasons to stay away from work on that day.

4.4.7 Difficulty in checking attendance

In the case of the teaching staff, they admitted that it was a bit difficult because, they

had to report as and when they had lectures. Since they did not have a particular time

they all had to report, it was difficult to know when somebody came or not. It could

only be found out when the attendance register was checked against the various

timetables which was a bit difficult and quiet complex to do, they said.

4.4.8 Human attitude

Management also believed that to a large extent, these withdrawal behaviours were

individual human attitudes and were difficult to change. This confirms the finding of

Bowers (2001) that lateness is a general job attitude and therefore the attitude and

commitment of the employee in question is overriding.

4.5 Measures Management had put in place to control lateness, absenteeism and

labour turnover

Below are the measures management has and is planning to put in place.

60

4.5.1 Biometric clocking system

As of the time this research was being conducted, Management was planning to acquire

a biometric system also known as the clocking system. This system would register the

time employees reported to work automatically which would not permit any

manipulations. At the end of every month, the data would be extracted and used to pay

part-time lecturers. For fulltime employees, it would be used as part of their assessment

for promotion and other purposes. Generally, employees will perceive promotion to be

fair if it is tied to attendance because it will be questionable to promote an employee

with an abysmal attendance record to a leadership position where he/she will have to

enforce attendance policies that he/she could not adhere to before being promoted.

4.5.2 Counselling and Punishment

Management was planning to have a programme in place to continuously counsel

habitual latecomers and absent employees. This they believed would help them identify

the problems that caused these withdrawal attitudes and help them with suggestions

about how to overcome them. Those who would still put up those attitudes would be

punished. Sometimes employees who were absent without any good cause would have

to forfeit leave days among others. This method according to Greenberg (1995) is good

for the elimination of lateness.

4.5.3 Salaries

Management stated that, they were working hard towards increasing salaries.

According to them, this was difficult at the time because the school was still new and

the student numbers were low. Since they were not being supported by the government

to take care of their expenditure, they had to cater for all costs on their own. The CACI

was their sole sponsor and the rest depended on the funds they were able to generate.

61

They stated that they were preparing a comprehensive outreach programme which they

believed would help increase student numbers so that they could increase salaries.

4.5.4 Assessment

They had also started with assessment of lecturers. Students were given the opportunity

to express what they thought about their lecturers. They were made to comment on

various aspects of their lecturers‟ work. The assessment covered delivery, punctuality,

assignments etc. They were hopeful that students would bring out details that would

help them to improve performance of their lecturers in general and therefore their

attendance and punctuality. This is a widely used method in almost all tertiary

institutions and this may be good for CAUC as well.

62

CHAPTER FIVE

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

5.0 Introduction

This chapter of the report presents the summary of findings, conclusion and

recommendations of the entire study and highlights the findings in line with the research

questions and objectives. It also gives recommendations to help address the challenges

in controlling lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover at the CAUC.

5.1 Summary of findings

The study revealed the following;

5.1.1 Reporting time

The study revealed that the reporting time to work was not properly communicated to

employees. This was the reason why employees had different opinions as to what the

official reporting time was. This contributed to the employees reporting to work late.

5.1.2 Proximity

It was also revealed that most of the staff stayed far from the CAUC and they took one

hour or more to get to work and this was one reason why they reported to work late.

5.1.3 Length of service

The study revealed that some of the employees planned working with the CAUC for

less than five years for reasons best known to them. This decision was taken before

they joined the CAUC.

63

5.1.4 Low salaries leading to low morale

Again the study revealed that salaries at CAUC was comparatively low compared to

other sister private institutions. Both management and staff agreed to this. According

to some of the staff, it affected their morale and therefore had effect on their reporting

time (lateness), punctuality (absenteeism) and labour turnover (those with intentions of

leaving).

5.1.5 Other factors affecting low morale

It was realised from the study that some employees felt their promotions were being

delayed or there were no opportunities for advancement which was also affecting their

morale.

5.1.6 Childcare

It was realised from the study, that some of the employees were absent sometimes due

to emergencies, childcare, other circumstances such as car problems etc.

5.1.7 Effect of withdrawal behaviours on productivity

The study established that these three withdrawal behaviours were having an effect on

productivity. This was established by the regression analysis.

5.1.8 Challenges in control

Management admitted that they were having challenges in controlling these withdrawal

behaviours. Some of the challenges included the fact that these behaviours to a large

extent were individual attitudes which were difficult to change, attendance registers

were being manipulated, staff were giving justifiable excuses among others.

5.2 Conclusion

The conclusion of the study is that, the staff of CAUC reported late to work or were

sometimes absent mainly because of low morale, emergency situations, reporting time

64

not communicated to them properly and also because most of them stayed far from the

CAUC. It was also realized that their low morale was caused by low salaries and other

factors such as delayed promotion, no opportunities for advancement among others.

The effects of these on productivity were also clearly established. Management

admitted to having challenges in controlling these behaviours basically because, they

were more of human behaviours and attitudes and therefore difficult to change.

5.3 Recommendations

Based on the findings above, the researcher wishes to recommend the following to

Management. It is hoped that when consideration is given to these, lateness,

absenteeism and labour turnover could be reduced at the CAUC.

5.3.1 Communication of reporting time

It is highly recommended that, appointment letters issued to new employees should

include the official reporting time since the study revealed that it was not included in

employees‟ letters of appointment but communicated to them verbally.

5.3.2 Official reporting time

Based on the finding that most of the employees stayed far from the CAUC, it is highly

recommended that official reporting time be changed from 8:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m and

closing time to 5:30 p.m. instead of 5:00 p.m. if this is suitable for employees. This

would give room to those who stay far from the CAUC to get to work on time. When

all opportunities have been given them to report on time, rules can be enforced when

they report late.

5.3.3 Labour turnover

The study revealed that some of the employees of the CAUC planned working for less

than five years not necessarily because of conditions of service but because of their own

ambitions. It is recommended that management puts in place a good human resource

65

planning and management policy to fill those vacancies as soon as they occur. In the

case of non-teaching staff, coaching, mentoring and other succession planning methods

can be used. In the case of teaching staff, part-time staff can serve as good

replacements when such situations occur.

Generally, labour turnover can be reduced by providing good conditions of service,

investing greatly in training and development, employing good human relations among

others.

5.3.4 Salary and allowance adjustment

It is highly recommended that the Management of CAUC should consider an upward

adjustment to the overall wage and salary structure as well as allowances. This is

because the study revealed that their wages and salaries appeared to be low compared to

other sister private institutions and some of the employees where thinking of looking

elsewhere for other jobs that pay better. This apart from reducing the anticipated

labour turnover would also increase morale and motivate those employees who will

decide to stay with the CAUC.

In addition to increasing salaries, incentives can also be used. Incentives should not

always be monetary. Incentives such as educational support for advancement, best

worker award, public recognition for good performance, regular staff meetings for staff

to express their concerns on issues, reward for punctuality, paying salaries on time

among others. This aside salary increment can motivate staff to stay and reduce labour

turnover.

5.4.5 Promotions and creation of opportunities for advancement

The study revealed that some of the employees had the impression that their promotion

had delayed and some also had the idea that there were no opportunities for

advancement. As much as management can, people due for promotion should be

66

promoted if there is a vacancy. If there are justifiable reasons why they cannot be

promoted, the employees involved should be informed and maybe given some

incremental jumps on their current level of salary. Also, employees should be made

aware and if possible, it should be documented that acquiring further qualifications only

is not a guarantee for promotions.

5.4.6 Tying promotions and cash incentives to attendance

It is further recommended that, promotions and cash incentives should be tied to

attendance and this could help to check lateness and absenteeism. This would require

that proper documentation be kept on lateness and absence issues. If two people with

the same performance level will have to be promoted or given any bonus, the employee

with superb attendance record should receive higher than the employee with abysmal

attendance record. In the same way, it will be questionable to promote an employee

with an abysmal attendance record to a leadership position where he/she will have to

enforce attendance policies that he/she could not adhere to before being promoted.

5.4.7 Biometric clocking system

Although as of the time this research was being conducted, management was planning

to acquire a biometric clocking system, the researcher wishes to stress the importance of

acquiring the system to ensure proper monitoring of attendance. It is important for

Management to note that, checking attendance does not only save cost but also give

clues in case of accidents, theft cases among others.

5.4.8 Closed-circuit television (CCTV) Cameras

With the use of the biometric clocking system however, there is the tendency of

employees clocking their reporting time and then leaving the work premises to attend to

private businesses. To prevent such a situation, CCTV cameras can be used at the entry

and exit gates of the CAUC to monitor employees coming in and going out. This will

67

mean that employees can leave the premises only with permission. It can help to

monitor how long they stay outside even during break.

5.4.9 Strict policies

Further to prevent lateness and absenteeism as the study revealed, management needs to

come out with strict policies regarding lateness and absenteeism. Employees should

know that they will not go unpunished when they default. A written policy can be

prepared to detail out various degrees of punishments that will be given to defaulters

depending on the default. For instance am employee may be made to forfeit some leave

days for absenting himself or herself without permission for say two times in a month.

5.4.10 Control measures

Control measures can be put in place to check absenteeism. For example, an employee

who does not report to work because of sickness should be made to submit an excuse

duty form properly signed by a Doctor. Once a while, the CAUC can follow up to

check the hospital records if an individual employee often reports of sickness. These

would deter employees from pretending to be sick as an excuse to stay away from work.

5.4.11 Childcare

CAUC can create a childcare centre for nursing mothers who may have to absent

themselves from work because their babysitters did not show up to take care of their

babies or because their little kids on vacation do not have anywhere to go. Only a room

with one attendant will be good for a start, depending on the number of nursing mothers

available at a particular period.

68

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73

APPENDIX A

KWAME NKRUMAH UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND

TECHNOLOGY

COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SOCIAL SCIENCES

SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

QUESTIONNAIRE FOR EMPLOYEES

This questionnaire is aimed at collecting data for the study “Challenges in controlling

lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover’’. This data is purely for academic reasons

and would be conducted in a confidential manner. The researcher therefore assures you

that no part of this information given would be used for any other purpose.

Instruction: Please answer the following questions by ticking or providing answers in

the appropriate spaces provided.

1. Please indicate your age

21-30 years [ ] 31-40 years [ ] 41-50 years [ ] 51years and above [

]

2. Highest educational qualification

MSLC [ ] SSSCE/WASSCE [ ] Diploma (HND) [ ]

Degree [ ] Masters [ ] Others [ ]

3. Rank: Senior Member[ ] Senior staff [ ] Junior staff [ ]

4. Category: Teaching staff [ ] Non-teaching staff [ ]

5. Gender : Male [ ] Female [ ]

6. Marital status: Married [ ] Single [ ] Divorced [ ]

7. Number of dependants: none [ ] 1 – 3 [ ] 3 – 6 [ ] 7 – 10 [ ]

8. Income level (net salary): GH¢ 200.00 – GH¢ 500.00 [ ]

GH¢ 500.00 – GH¢ 1,000.00 [ ] GH¢ 1,000 – GH¢ 2,000.00 [ ]

GH¢ 2,000.00 and above [ ]

9. What is the official reporting time to work?

before 8 o‟clock [ ] before 9 o‟clock [ ] after 9 o‟clock [ ]

74

10. Around what time do you report to work?

before 8 o‟clock [ ] before 9 o‟clock [ ] after 9 o‟clock [ ]

11. How far do you stay from the University College?

walking distance [ ] 30 mins walk or drive [ ] 1 hour walk or drive [

] more than 1 hour walk or drive [ ]

12. What mode do you use in getting to work

by foot [ ] by public transport [ ] by own vehicle [ ]

others, specify ………………………………………………………

13. How many times do you absent yourself from duty in a month?

None [ ] once [ ] thrice [ ] more than 3 times [

]

14. Do you normally seek permission when absent?

yes [ ] no [ ] N/A [ ]

if no, please explain why

……………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………

……

15. How long do you intend working with the CAUC?

less than 5 years [ ] more than 5 years [ ] for as long as the College

decides to keep me [ ]

others, specify

……………………………………………………………………………………

…...

……………………………………………………………………………………

…...

From the statement below, please indicate your level of agreement or disagreement

to the following statements. Please use the scale below

75

1=STRONGLY AGREE 2=AGREE 3=NEUTRAL 4=DISAGREE

5=STRONGLY DISAGREE

Why do staff report late to work or absent themselves? 1 2 3 4 5

16. Low morale

17. Emergency e.g. Sickness, accidents, poor weather conditions

18. Other circumstances e.g. Car problems

19. I feel I am very important, without me, there will be no

productivity

20. Flexible working schedule

Under what condition will you leave the service of CAUC

21. Low salaries

22. No opportunity for advancement

23. Delayed promotion

Others, specify

……………………………………………………………………………………..……

……………………………………………………………………………………………

………..

24. What in your opinion causes low morale to work at CAUC?

Low salary [ ] Inadequate retention plans [ ]

No opportunities for progression [ ]

Others, specify

…………………………………………………………………..........................

On a scale of 1-5, please indicate your level of agreement or disagreement to the

following statements. Please use the scale below

1=STRONGLY AGREE 2=AGREE 3=NEUTRAL 4=DISAGREE

5=STRONGLY DISAGREE

What is the effect of lateness, absenteeism and labour

turnover on productivity?

1 2 3 4 5

25. I am not able to meet deadlines because I absent myself or

come to work late

26. I am not sure I will stay long so my commitment is low

27. I usually postpone assignments to the next day because I

come late

28. Do you agree that lateness, absenteeism and/or labour turnover affects performance

or

productivity at CAUC?

Yes [ ] No [ ]

29. What sort of motivation do you think will help reduce or prevent lateness,

absenteeism

and/or labour turnover?

76

……………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………

……

30. What measures will you suggest Management put in place to control lateness,

absenteeism and labour turnover?

……………………………………………………………………………………………

….

……………………………………………………………………………………………

….

31. What recommendation will you give to Management?

……………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………

77

APPENDIX B

KWAME NKRUMAH UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND

TECHNOLOGY

COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SOCIAL SCIENCES

SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

INTERVIEW GUIDE FOR MANAGEMENT

1. What is the official reporting time to work?

2. How does the institution monitor attendance of employees to work and how

effective is it?

3. Do you think that CAUC is compensating employees very well comparing your

salaries to other private University Colleges?

4. a. If NO, what is CAUC doing to improve salaries.

b. If YES, please justify

5. On records, four employees have resigned from the employment of the

University College. What do you think was the main reason why they left?

6. What are some of the challenges Management has faced in trying to curb

lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover?

7. What are some of the measures that Management has so far put into place to

control lateness, absenteeism and labour turnover?

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