A STUDY ON EMPLOYEE JOB SATISFACTION IN SUGAR

INDUSTRY

ABSTRACT
Employee satisfaction is defined as the employee’s reaction to what he or she receives from
the job, that is, the work environment. By looking at the differences between what employees
want and what they get, public sector employers can make organizational improvements or
changes to the work environment that may motivate employees. Wright, B. (2001, October) 2
.The present study revealed that significantly higher percentage of the workers was satisfied
with their present job at sugar industry. The study further suggested that pay, benefits and
working conditions for their overall employee satisfaction. The present study was designed to
investigate the satisfaction level regarding that pay, benefits and working environment at
Sugar industry. A structured questionnaire was used to collect the required data. In analyzing
data descriptive statistics were applied. A total 100 respondents were selected on random
sampling basis. Primary and secondary sources of data are used for this present study.
 INTRODUCTION
Employee satisfaction, also known as job satisfaction, is the extent to which an individual is
happy with their job and the role it plays in their life. The extent to which employers prioritize
employee satisfaction depends on the employer and the industry – the Hawthorne studies and the work
of George Elton Mayo in the 1930s put the link between employer satisfaction and productivity on the
radar.

Satisfaction researchers tend to differentiate between affective satisfaction and

cognitive job satisfaction – affective satisfaction is the sum total of pleasurable emotions and feelings
associated with the job and its place in the individual’s life, whereas cognitive satisfaction refers to
rational satisfaction over particular facets of the job e.g. pay and day-today responsibilities.
There are a wide variety of theories surrounding employee satisfaction.

Dispositional theory, for example, argues that individuals are predisposed to a certain level of job
satisfaction regardless of the job or industry. Range of Affect Theory, put forward by Edwin A. Locke
in the 1970s, is a theory based on expectations – satisfaction depends on the gap between what an
employee expects from a job and what they actually get.

Employee satisfaction plays an essential role in motivating the employees to deliver their level
best and also leads to a positive ambience at the workplace.
Employee satisfaction is no rocket science and trust me; it does not take much to satisfy your
employees. Small but sincere efforts are enough to satisfy employees so that they not only enjoy their
current roles and responsibilities but also stick to the organization for a long time. Let us go through
ways which improve employee satisfaction.

Individuals should be assigned work as per their expertise, interest area and specialization.
If you expect a marketing guy to do justice in an accounts profile, he is bound to get
demotivated, which would eventually affect his performance. Discuss with the employees at the time
of their joining only as to what profile would suit them the most to avoid confusions later on. Key
responsibility areas should be communicated to the employees very clearly from day one. If
employees work on something

which they are best at, not only they would be happy and satisfied but also yield better results. No
employee should be overburdened. Work has to be equally distributed among all. Why should
only one employee do everything while others just come, enjoy and go back home? Favouritsm and
partialities have no place in the professional world. Please do not give less work to someone just
because he is your friend and you like him. This way, others who actually end up doing more work
eventually lose interest and start looking for better opportunities.
Promote a healthy work culture. Encourage employees to talk to each other, discuss among
themselves and work as a single unit not for themselves but for the organization. It is indeed the
responsibility of the management to make their employees realize that they all are a part of a single
family and it is foolish to fight amongst themselves and create unnecessary problems for each other.
Let them have their lunch together or go out for small get together once in a while. This way, they
seldom find office monotonous, are satisfied with their jobs and also work with full dedication.

Employees are unsatisfied the most when their voices are not heard. It might be a small problem for
you but for the other person, it can be a major cause of concern. Grievances need to be addressed on
an immediate basis. It is the responsibility of the human resource professionals to sit with their
employees on a regular basis and find out whether they are satisfied with their jobs or not? Let them
come out with their problems.

Give ample growth opportunities to employees. Employees lose interest in work, the moment they
have nothing new to do. Give them new assignments, new challenges, new roles so that they get to
learn something interesting every day. Do not unnecessarily pressurize them for unrealistic targets. Do
not interfere much and let them work in their own way. Guide them whenever required.

Not appreciating the employees when they have performed well leads to dissatisfaction and negativity
in them. The credit should not always go to the top management and team leaders but to the
employees as well.

Bosses should not forget that their role is not to shout on their subordinates but to handhold them and
stand by them even in the worst situations.

Majority of the employees are frustrated because they do not have an understanding BOSS. Nothing
works better than rewarding employees suitably and releasing their salaries on time. Most of the
times, employees have a problem because they do not get their incentives and payments when they
require the most. Why would an individual slog for an entire day if he does not require money? Do
not create too much of a problem in clearing their bills. Factors of Employee Satisfaction

Keeping employees engaged and satisfied takes more than just good pay and benefits. The following
list reveals some of the key job satisfaction aspects cited by employees:

o Respect – According to the SHRM report, employees rate respectful treatment of all employees
as the most important factor in job satisfaction.
o Trust – Perhaps because of workplace uncertainty in the years following the Great Recession,
employees indicated that trust between themselves and senior management was another highly
important satisfaction factor.
o Security – If you’ve ever had to go to work each day wondering whether your job is secure, you
know it can cause a great deal of anxiety. Organizations can provide a sense of security through
honest communication and transparency about the company’s health and longterm viability.
o Healthy Environment – Workplaces that are free from stress, morale issues, harassment and
discriminatory practices can create a positive and healthy environment for everyone.
o Career Path – No one wants a dead-end job. Employees are more likely to excel when they can
see an established upward path, with the opportunity to earn a higher wage and take on greater
responsibilities.
o Pay and Benefits – Good wages aren’t the only reason employees find satisfaction in their jobs,
but they typically rank high on the list. Competitive pay generally makes employees feel valued,
and gives them less reason to look elsewhere for work.
SCOPE OF THE STUDY
1. To identify the employee's level of satisfaction on their job.
2. This study is helpful to the organization for conducting further research.
3. It is helpful to identify the employee's level of satisfaction towards safety
andwelfare measures.
4. This study will be helpful to the organization for identifying the area of job
dissatisfaction for the employees.
5. This study helps to take managerial decisions as and when necessary by the
organization.
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
1. To know the importance of job satisfaction.
2. To identify the factors affecting job satisfaction .
3. To find out the problems faced by the employees if any in the organization.
4. To offer the valuable suggestions for the improvement of employees job satisfaction.
 REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Savery (1989) highlighted the job satisfaction of nurses in Perth, Western Australia. The job
satisfaction level of the nurses was mainly due to interesting and challenging work which was
followed by a feeling of achievement wherein, he even said salary was ranked as a very low
satisfier. The job satisfaction level increased as the person grew old where in the variables
like gender, time in hospital, position held were controlled. Organizations should always
focus on satisfying the three basic needs (Individual motivators, Employee relationships and
personal relationships) of an employee which will in return help the employees in achieving
job satisfaction.
Melvin (1993) stated that the environmental design of an organization plays a very
important role in job satisfaction at the same time it also plays an important role in employees
high job involvement. A good environmental design of an organization helps in resolving the
conflicts and confusion. The author even cites that it is the responsibility of the management
to design the environment in such a manner that it reduces the dissatisfaction where in the
work tasks, working patterns are properly mentioned.

MacDermid(1999) studied the job satisfaction level of workaholics. He

said there are six variables of workaholic patterns i.e. Workaholics, Enthusiastic
Workaholics, Work Enthusiastic, Unengaged Workers, Relaxed Workers and Disenchanted
Workers. The job satisfaction level and career satisfaction level was much more in
Enthusiastic Workaholics , Work Enthusiastic, Relaxed Workers than Workaholics,
Unengaged Workers and Disenchanted Workers because of the future career prospects,
working involvement, drive and work enjoyment.
Beumont (1982) in his article highlights the job satisfaction level of general household
in United States & Britain where in there is a close fit relationship in U.S than Britain. In the
study he found that in U.S there is a positive relationship between Job Satisfaction and Age
where as in Britain it was considerably low.

Partridge (1981) studied the job satisfaction level of women in Britain in which he
found that the job satisfaction level of women was more as compared with black men, as they
normally have low expectations from their jobs. At the same time they have a greater feeling
that the alternative jobs available to them differs very less than those available to them.
 Saari& Judge (2004) discussed on employee attitudes leading to job satisfaction. The
employee attitude is related to the job, when a person has a liking towards to the job the
satisfaction level increases there by increasing the organization performance as in a whole.

Savery (1987) highlights the effect of motivators on job satisfaction. He states intrinsic
motivators’ helps in achieving job satisfaction. The study says stress being one of the major
reason leading to dissatisfaction therefore it has to be taken care of properly to reduce the
level of dissatisfaction. The immediate supervisor is the person who has a major influence on
job satisfaction. The supervisor helps in increasing the satisfaction level by offering more of
intrinsic motivators like challenging work and career development to the subordinates and he
is the one who provides the most tangible assistance to the subordinate.
DATA COLLECTION MEDHODS
Researchers need to consider the sources on which to base and confirm their research and
findings. They have a choice between primary data and secondary sources and the use of
both, which is termed triangulation, or dual methodology.

Primary data is the data collected by the researcher themselves,

1. interview
2. observation
3. action research
4. case studies
5. life histories
6. questionnaires
7. ethnographic research
8. longitudinal studies
Secondary data sources are data that already exists

1. Previous research
2. Official statistics
3. Mass media products
4. Diaries
5. Letters
6. Government reports
7. Web information
8. Historical data and information

DATA COLLECTION
Data collection done through interactions with employee

RESEARCH INSTRUMENT
A questionnaire is a research instrument consisting of a series of questions (or other
types of prompts) for the purpose of gathering information from respondents. The
questionnaire was invented by the Statistical Society of London in 1838. Although
questionnaires are often designed for statistical analysis of the responses, this is not always
the case. Questionnaires have advantages over some other types of surveys in that they are
cheap, do not require as much effort from the questioner as verbal or telephone surveys, and
often have standardized answers that make it simple to compile data. However, such
standardized answers may frustrate users. Questionnaires are also sharply limited by the fact
that respondents must be able to read the questions and respond to them. Thus, for some
demographic groups conducting a survey by questionnaire may not be concrete.

RESEARCH TOOLS
This part of study is mainly focused on verifying main objectives of study. Researcher
used Chi square, simple percentage and graphs as statistical tool for analysis of data

CONCEPTUALIZATION SUGAR
Both the Plants manufacture plantation white sugar from sugarcane. The byproducts arising
out of sugar manufacture are Bagasse, Molasses and Pressmud.

Bagasse
The sugar plants will generate a quantity equal to 30% of total cane crushed. The entire
bagasse is burnt in the boilers to generate steam for power generation as well as for sugar
production. Molasses

Molasses produced will be around 4.5% of total cane crushed. The molasses will be in
processed in the Distillery to produce Rectified Spirit (RS) and ENA (Extra Neutral Alcohol)
which are consumed by the IMFL units.

Press mud
Press mud produced in the process of sugar manufacture will be sent to Distillery.

Distillery
The molasses produced in the sugar plant is fermented in the Distillery along with
enzymes to produce a fermented wash. The wash is distilled in a series of distillation
columns to produce Rectified Spirit (RS). The RS may be sold in the market. The RS is further
distilled and purified to produce Extra Neutral Alcohol (ENA) which is consumed by bottling
units to produce IMFL. The impure materials removed during the production of RS and ENA
are sold to those who produce different alco chemicals like Acetaldehyde, Acetic acid, Acetic

Anhydride,Ethyl-Acetate.

PROFILE OF RESPONDENTS
The survey was conducted among employees in Arignar anna Sugar Mills Limited
Thanjavur.
 The total population is above 656 employees the sample population of my study is

100EMPLOYEES HYPOTHESIS

H0: There is no significance relationship between experience and Managers

and Supervisors have a clear commitment to maintaining high quality standards
H1: There is a significance relationship betweenexperience and Managers and
Supervisors have a clear commitment to maintaining high quality standards
H0: There is no significance relationship between age and I am encouraged to come
up with new and efficient ways to complete a task

H1: There is no significance relationship between age and I am encouraged to come

up with new and efficient ways to complete a task.

DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS OF PRIMARY DATA

This part of study is mainly focused on verifying main objectives of study. Researcher
used Chi square, simple percentage and graphs as statistical tool for analysis of data.
DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

Gender
Valid Cumulative
Frequency Percent Percent Percent
Valid male 100 100.0 100.0 100.0

INTERPRETATION
In the above table all the respondents specified male. According to this all the
employees in the concern are male

Age
Valid Cumulative
Frequency Percent Percent Percent
Valid to 29 years 54 54.0 54.0 54.0
to 39 years 32 32.0 32.0 86.0
above 14 14.0 14.0 100.0
Total 100 100.0 100.0
INTERPRETATION
In the above specified table, 54% of the respondents belong to 19 to 29 years of age,
32% of the respondents belong to 30 to 39 years of age, 14% of the respondents belong to
above 40 years of age.
According to this
analysis most of the
employees are 19 to
years of age