An Assessment of Employees Benefits in Ministry of Finance Lafia, Nasarawa State
Chapter One
OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY
The objectives of the study are;
- To assess the employees’ benefit in ministry of finance Lafia, Nasarawa state
- To ascertain why employees’ benefit is important in the ministry of finance Lafia, Nasarawa state
- To ascertain the significant relationship between employee’s benefit and ministry of finance performance in Lafia, Nasarawa state
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
INTRODUCTION
The implications of employee benefit decisions are among the most relevant for remaining competitive in the labor market. From a total compensation perspective, indirect compensation or benefits plays a significant factor in the attraction and retention of employees. This is particularly true for costly benefits such as health insurance and pension plans, the provision of which is an increasingly important issue to both employers and employees. Executives have long been concerned about the costs of providing competitive employee benefits (Conference Board, 2007). Typically, benefit costs comprise about one-third of an organization’s total labor costs and such costs have steadily increased (Hewitt, 2002). As such, benefit decisions often have a significant effect on acompany’s bottom line. For example, the decision to promise current employees health benefits or certain types of pension plans following their retirement has long-term financial implications. The general managerial focus and concern regarding benefits such as health care is reflected in statements by CEOs such as Bill Ford who said: “Clearly, it’s our biggest issue we have, bar none. Thehealth care issue is one that I find intractable”(Wilson, 2003).In spite of the prominence of benefit issues to organizations, when reviewing the human resource management (HRM)literature, there is a surprising general absence of attention given to employee benefits. Indeed, in their analysis of gaps between HRM academic research and practitioner interests, Deadrick and Gibson (2007) found that the largest gap was in the areas of compensation and benefits. While employee benefits are recognized as a major area of HRM practice, HRM researchers generally have not taken adequate steps to provide research in this area to inform practice. In an era when HRM scholars wish for greater influence with executives, greater attention by HRM researchers to these areas of concern among organizational leaders can contribute to elevating the role and perceived value of HRM.
During the 20th century, employers increased the economic security of employees by providing, in exchange for labor, benefitsin addition to direct compensation. Apart from direct compensation, benefits encompass all other inducements and servicesprovided by an employer to employees (BLS, 2005). Like other HRM policies, employer-sponsored benefits have been shaped by social, cultural, and legislative forces (Kaufman, 2004). To maintain focus, this manuscript addresses voluntary employer-provided benefits for individuals in the U.S. Employer-provided benefits in countries other than the U.S. are not addressed given the significant variation in legislation, norms, and implementation. Similarly, statutory benefits that federal and state governments require employers to provide to U.S.-based employees (e.g., workers’ compensation insurance), are not addressed given the significant variation in legislation, cost-containment strategies, and implementation approaches across states. Most industrialized nations assure the welfare of citizens through government-sponsored systems that provide for the health and safety of citizens, protecting them from consequences of economic fluctuations. In contrast, in the U.S. a system of welfare capitalism emerged whereby employers, rather than the government, played a primary role in assuring the health and welfare of employees and their families. Welfare capitalism encompassed a wide range of private, firm-level social and benefit policies, including employee representation, recreation, stock ownership, and benefits relating to retirement, sickness, paid time off, and unemployment (see Jacoby, 1997).Prior to the Great Depression of the 1930s, welfare capitalism was centered in high wage industries. Accordingly, relatively few workers were provided employer-sponsored benefits in addition to direct compensation. The Depression brought the inadequacies of the welfare capitalism that existed at the time into sharp relief. In response, New Deal policymakers joined labor leaders and reform activists to establish the basis of the modern U.S. welfare state. Private employer benefits, subsidized by tax incentives, became an essential supplement to the basic government safety net and a key bargaining chip in negotiations with organized labor. Welfare capitalism expanded beginning with the economic recovery after the Depression and this expansion was supported by government legislation and workforce unionization. Today the U.S. continues to retain aspects of welfare capitalism, but what has changed is that organizations face more intense competitive pressures than when welfare capitalism first emerged. The benefits responsibilities employers shoulder today are increasingly portrayed as a burden given the competitive pressures brought about by the globalization of product and service markets, demographic shifts in the workforce (e.g., the baby boomer generation nearing retirement being followed by a much smaller base of employees to potentially fund retirement benefits), health care inflation rates that outpace inflation and growth, and uncertain immigration policies. Such strain has led to discussion of shifting responsibility for major benefits such as retirement savings and health care from employers to employees as well as to the government.
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research design
The researcher used descriptive research survey design in building up this project work the choice of this research design was considered appropriate because of its advantages of identifying attributes of a large population from a group of individuals. The design was suitable for the study as the study sought to an assessment of employees benefits in ministry of finance Lafia, Nasarawa state
Sources of data collection
Data were collected from two main sources namely:
(i)Primary source and
(ii)Secondary source
Primary source:
These are materials of statistical investigation which were collected by the research for a particular purpose. They can be obtained through a survey, observation questionnaire or as experiment; the researcher has adopted the questionnaire method for this study.
Secondary source:
These are data from textbook Journal handset etc. they arise as byproducts of the same other purposes. Example administration, various other unpublished works and write ups were also used.
Population of the study
Population of a study is a group of persons or aggregate items, things the researcher is interested in getting information on an assessment of employees benefits in ministry of finance Lafia, Nasarawa state. 200 staff of ministry of finance Lafia, Nasarawa state was selected randomly by the researcher as the population of the study.
CHAPTER FOUR
PRESENTATION ANALYSIS INTERPRETATION OF DATA
Introduction
Efforts will be made at this stage to present, analyze and interpret the data collected during the field survey. This presentation will be based on the responses from the completed questionnaires. The result of this exercise will be summarized in tabular forms for easy references and analysis. It will also show answers to questions relating to the research questions for this research study. The researcher employed simple percentage in the analysis.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
Introduction
It is important to ascertain that the objective of this study was to ascertain an assessment of employees benefits in ministry of finance Lafia, Nasarawa state
In the preceding chapter, the relevant data collected for this study were presented, critically analyzed and appropriate interpretation given. In this chapter, certain recommendations made which in the opinion of the researcher will be of benefits in addressing the challenges of employees benefits in ministry of finance Lafia, Nasarawa state
Summary
This study was on an assessment of employees benefits in ministry of finance Lafia, Nasarawa state. Three objectives were raised which included: To assess the employees’ benefit in ministry of finance Lafia, Nasarawa state, to ascertain why employees’ benefit is important in the ministry of finance Lafia, Nasarawa state, to ascertain the significant relationship between employee’s benefit and ministry of finance performance in Lafia, Nasarawa state. In line with these objectives, two research hypotheses were formulated and two null hypotheses were posited. The total population for the study is 200 staff of ministry of finance Lafia, Nasarawa state. The researcher used questionnaires as the instrument for the data collection. Descriptive Survey research design was adopted for this study. A total of 133 respondents made up directors, administrative staff, senior staff and junior staff were used for the study. The data collected were presented in tables and analyzed using simple percentages and frequencies
Conclusion
Employee benefits have been the subject of much management study and analysis. To date, the term has been generally been defined in terms that are useful for accounting purposes with moderate variations in the specific terms depending on whether the definition is being used by government, management, or labor. For management, benefits have been long used to recruit and retain a talented workforce, and therein lies their utility. As employee perceptions of the value of benefits have been demonstrated to vary based on whether they are mandated by regulation or are discretionary on the part of the employer, their usefulness as a recruiting and retention tool is similarly dependent on this distinction.
Recommendation
The study also recommends that the government should continue providing health protection benefits to its employees since it will help them create a sense of loyalty and encourage their productivity in the public sector. The study continues to recommend that the government should review the current retirement package since a good retirement package will attract and retain employees in the public sector and also improve their productivity. Finally the study recommends that public organizations need to improvise employee recognition programs for jobs well done, this will motivate employees thus enhancing employee productivity in the public sector
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