4.1 Human Needs & Rewards

4.1.1 Role of work in satisfying human needs
4.1. 1 – Why do people work?

What do people get out of work?

 Money: 

- People need money in order to buy the things they want and need

 Security '':

- Having a job that is likely to last, perhaps with good prospects of promotion or career progression, regular increases in pay, and a pension at the end, gives people the feeling of security in that they can plan for the future

 Job satisfaction: 

- People get job satisfaction because they get a sense of self-esteem

- This is often coupled with status symbols (like expensive cars and houses) that can make people happy

 A sense of belonging: 

- People tend to form groups with other people they can identify with

- The workplace can provide a sense of belonging because everyone there can identify with each other

- This can encourage loyalty to the group, or an increase in employee motivation

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs:

MOST IMPORTANT: - Physiological needs (things needed for survival)

MOST IMPORTANT: - Needs for safety and security

MOST IMPORTANT: - Social needs

MOST IMPORTANT: - Needs for recognition and esteem

LESS IMPORTANT: - Needs for self-fulfillment

4.1.2 Methods of financial rewards
Financial incentives:

 Timework: 

- Wages are normally paid weekly and are based on a fixed hourly rate for the number of hours an employee works in one week (differs from salaries which are fixed for one month, regardless of the number hours worked)

 Productivity agreements: 

- Employees might expect to receive annual increases in their wages or salaries

- Some businesses may agree to increase wages and salary levels in return for an increase in productivity from the employees

- Productivity agreements are usually negotiated between the employers and a trade union (working on behalf of the workers)

 Piecework: 

- Workers are sometimes paid according to how much they produce (per piece)

- This can encourage employees to work harder and produce more in return for more money

- However, if quality is sacrificed for speed, the quality of the goods may decrease

 Performance-related pay: 

- Employees may be paid based on how well they perform at work

- This can motivate employees to work more skillfully

 Bonuses and commissions: 

- Some employees are paid a bonus or commission

- Bonuses are extra payments given to employees in recognition of their contribution to the success of the business

- Commissions are payments based on the value of the sales an employee made (usually a percentage of the sales)

 Profit sharing: 

- Some businesses have profit-sharing schemes

- This is when businesses give employees additional payment based on how much profit the business made

- This can motivate employees to work harder to increase business profit

 Share ownership: 

- Some companies let their employees buy shares from the company at a better rate than the rest of the public

- This can increase motivation in employees because they know that they work for a business for which they are part owners

 Fringe benefits  : 

- Fringe benefits businesses offer their employees can include company cars, health insurance, pension schemes, and holidays

- However, these benefits do not create motivation on their own

4.1.3 Non-financial rewards Understand the significance of different methods
Non-financial incentives:

 Job enrichment: 

- Employees can sometimes be given tasks that require more skill

- More challenging tasks cause employees to set goals and feel more challenged

- This can give the employee a feeling of responsibility and of being valued by his or her employer

 Job rotation: 

- Employees are able to swap between jobs at different times

- Job rotation gives employees more variety in their work and can make working less monotonous

- Employees can learn more skills and gain more opportunities for career development

 Job enlargement: 

- Employees are given a greater variety of similar-level tasks

- This can make the work less monotonous, and more interesting and satisfying

 Appraisal schemes: 

- Employers can interview employees to find out their workers needs and wants

- A well-conducted appraisal can make an employee feel valued and motivated

- A poorly-conducted appraisal can make an employee feel threatened and motivated

4.1.4 Management styles and motivation methods
Importance of employee motivation:

- How motivated a worker is can affect his or her behaviour at the workplace (may have an affect the behaviour of other workers)

- Motivation affects a worker’s job performance (directly affects the efficiency of a business

- Lack of motivation may cause an employee to quit his or her job (affects the business due to reduced labour and the business may have to go through a costly recruitment process to replace that worker)

Factors affecting motivation:

- Job satisfaction

- Job rotation

- Salary and wages

- Relationship with managers and co-workers

- Job security

- Job enrichment or challenges

- Workplace environment

- Empowerment

Roles of management in motivating employees:

- Make the employees feel valued by the management

- Look after the health of the employees and safety of the workplace

- Take into account to the views, opinions, and concerns of the employees when making decisions

- Have effective leadership skills in order to organize and lead employees

Management styles: