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Job Satisfaction and Employees' Turnover in Libyan Oil Companies: the Application of the Job Characteristics Model in a Different Cultural Setting

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Job Satisfaction and Employees' Turnover in Libyan Oil Companies: the Application of the Job Characteristics Model in a Different Cultural Setting Job Satisfaction and Employees' Turnover in Libyan Oil Companies: The Application of the Job Characteristics Model in a Different Cultural Setting By Asaad Elomami A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the Award of Doctor of Philosophy February, 2015 I certify that this is a true and accurate version of the thesis approved by the examiners, and that all relevant ordinance regulations have been fulfilled. Signed Principal Supervisor: ………………………… Date: ................................ Declaration I, A. Elomami hereby declare that this thesis is my own original work and has not been submitted elsewhere in fulfilment of the requirement of any other award. Where information has been derived from other sources, I can confirm that this has been indicated in the thesis. Signed …………………………………………… Date......................................… ii Dedication I wish to dedicate this thesis to my beloved father and brother (May Allah's mercy be upon them) who, so sadly, passed away a few years ago before I started my PhD journey; with all loving memories. I wish also to dedicate this thesis to my Mother (May Allah’s blessings be upon her) who taught me that the best kind of knowledge to have is that which is learned for its own sake. This thesis is also dedicated to my beloved wife Nagla , and my children Rafik, Riyad , Sarah , Zuhair and Nadine , for all of their support, inspiration, and love. Through our loyalty to each we become stronger, we stand together. iii Acknowledgments First and above all, I sincerely thank Allah, my God, The Most Gracious, and The Most Merciful for granting me the capability to complete my PhD, and for often showing so many good people to me to help with my thesis. Undertaking this PhD has been a truly life-changing experience for me and it would not have been possible to do without the support and guidance that I received from many people. I have to acknowledge my deepest appreciation to my supervisor, Professor Mohamed Branine for his invaluable assistance, support and guidance throughout the duration of this study. Special thanks to the staff at Dundee Business School for their support, guidance and helpful suggestions. I am also indebted to all the PhD students at the school who I have had the pleasure to work with. They have been an invaluable support during all these years. Thanks to all of them. Also, I would like to thank and acknowledge all employees in the organisations studied who agreed to participate in this study. Certainly, without their cooperation, it would not have been possible to gain the many insights revealed in the thesis. I would like to express special thanks, love and gratitude to my lovely wife Nagla whose love and encouragement allowed me to finish this journey; she has given me her unequivocal support throughout, as always, for which my mere expression of thanks does not suffice; she really deserves my heartfelt “thanks my darling”. Finally, I warmly thank and appreciate my whole family in Libya for their support and patience. iv Abstract The Job Characteristics Model is widely accepted as a conceptual tool for addressing problems related to employees‟ motivation, dissatisfaction and organisational performance. Therefore, this study attempts to apply Hackman and Oldham Job Characteristics Model (JCM) by among the five core dimensions of autonomy, skill variety, task identity, task significance and feedback and job satisfaction and employees‟ turnover in the Libyan oil companies located in Benghazi city. Also, to explore the current situation of organisational determinants of job satisfaction in the Libyan oil companies and to investigate its correlation with employees‟ job satisfaction. These factors (pay/rewards, supervision, promotion opportunity, relationship with co-workers and work conditions) are tested empirically in the companies studied. A total of 400 questionnaires were collected and 20 interviews were conducted in four oil companies. The main findings of the study confirm the positive correlations among the five core dimensions of the JCM and job satisfaction. Also, organisational factors were found to influence employees‟ job satisfaction as the employees were satisfied with their pay/rewards, supervision, promotion opportunity, relationship with co-workers and working conditions. Moreover, employees have shown more concern for factors such as job security and change in the social status. Also, it was found that employees‟ turnover increased in relation to security and social factors such as the absence of safety and security in the oil fields after the Libyan uprising, especially those oil fields located in the Eastern region. It was also found that the correlations among job satisfaction and employees‟ turnover was negative and the correlation among the five core dimensions of the JCM model and employees‟ turnover were negative too. The study makes a significant contribution to knowledge in theory and practice. Among such contributions are identification of gaps in the literature on job satisfaction and the core dimension of job characteristics model. Also, the study contributes to the redesign of jobs and working relationships in the Libyan oil companies. v Table of content Declaration ……………………………………………………………. ii Dedication …………………………………………………………….. iii Acknowledgments …………………………………………………..... iv Abstract ……………………………………………………………….. v Table of content ………………………………………………………. vi List of tables …………………………………………………………... xiii List of figures …………………………………………………………. xv List of Abbreviations................................................................................ xvi CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1.1 The rational for the study.................................................................... 1 1.2 Research objectives…………………………………………………. 5 1.3 Research questions………………………………………………….. 7 1.4 The conduct of the study .....................……………………………... 9 1.5 Significance of the Study…………………………………………… 10 1.6 National Culture and Organisational Culture..................................... 12 1.7 The structure of the thesis…………………………………………... 14 CHAPTER TWO: AN OVERVIEWOF THE LIBYAN SOCIO- ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL CONTEXT 2.1 Introduction…………………………………………………………. 17 2.2 Geography and Population………………………………………….. 18 2.3 Historical Background……………………………………………… 19 2.4 Society and Culture…………………………………………………. 21 2.5 The Libyan Political Regime……………………………………….. 24 2.6 Libyan uprising……………………………………………………… 27 2.7 Libyan Economy before the Discovery of Oil……………………… 29 2.8 The Libyan Economy after the Discovery of Oil…………………… 30 2.9 An Overview of the Libyan Oil and Gas Sector……………………. 33 vi 2.10 The National Oil Corporation (NOC)……………………………... 35 2.11 Description of the companies studied …......……………………… 39 2.11.1 Oil Arab Gulf Company (AGOCO)………………………... 39 2.11.2 Oil Zueitina Company…………………………………….. 39 2.11.3 Al Jouf Company of Oil Technology (JOT)……………….. 40 2.11.4 Al Brega Oil Marketing company ……………..................... 40 2.12 The challenges of the new Libya………………………………….. 41 2.13 Conclusion…………………………………………………………. 43 CHAPTER THREE:JOB SATISFACTION AND MOTIVATION: A CONCEPTUAL ANALYSIS 3.1 Introduction…………………………………………………………. 45 3.2 Motivation…………………………………………………………... 45 3.3 Job satisfaction……………………………………………………… 47 3.4 The relationship between motivation and job satisfaction………….. 51 3.5 Motivation theories………………………………………………….. 52 3.5.1 Content theories……………………………………………......... 52 3.5.1.1 Maslow‟s Hierarchy of Needs Theory…………………....... 53 3.5.1.2 Herzberg‟s Motivator-Hygiene Theory…………………....... 58 3.5.1.3 Alderfer‟s ERG Theory…………………………………….. 62 3.5.1.4 Relationships between Different Content Theories……........ 65 3.5.2 Process Theories……………………………………………........ 66 3.5.2.1 Adams' Equity Theory…………………………………......... 67 3.5.2.2 Vroom's Expectancy Theory……………………………....... 70 3.6 Evaluation of Job Satisfaction and Motivation Theories………….... 74 3.7 Determinants of job satisfaction……………………………………. 75 3.7.1 Pay/Rewards…………………………………………………… 78 3.7.2 Supervision……………………………………………………. 79 3.7.3 Promotion opportunities………………………………………. 81 3.7.4 Relationship with Co-workers………………………………… 82 vii 3.7.5 Work conditions………………………………………………. 83 3.8 Consequences of Job satisfaction…………………………………... 84 3.8.1. Employee turnover……………………………………………. 84 3.9 Conclusion…………………………………………………………... 86 CHAPTER FOUR: THE JOB CHARACTERISTICS MODEL AND JOB SATISFACTION: A THEORETICAL ANALYSIS 4.1 Introduction ………………………………………………………… 89 4.2 Job characteristics model (JCM)………………………………........ 89 4.3 Evaluation of job characteristics model…………………………….. 96 4.4 Studies of Job characteristics model ………………………….......... 98 4.5 Job satisfaction and employees‟ turnover........................................... 108 4.6 Job satisfaction studies……………………………………………… 110 4.6.1 Job satisfaction and demographic factors……………………..... 111 4.6.2 Job satisfaction and organisational factors…………………....... 113 4.7 Theoretical framework……………………………………………… 116 4.8 Conclusion ………………………………………………………….. 118 CHAPTER FIVE: RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY 5.1 Introduction………………………………………………………..... 119 5.2 Research Philosophy………………………………………………... 119 5.3 Research approach…………………………………………............... 123 5.3.1 Quantitative Research………………………………………........ 124 5.3.2 Qualitative Research……………………………………….......... 125 5.3.3 Triangulation or mixed method……………………………......... 127 5.4 Research design …………………………………………………...... 129 5.5 Research population………………………………………………… 132 5.6 Determination of the sample size…………………………………… 132 5.7 Data
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