ABSTRACT
The title on this research
work is “the effect of health and safety on employee’s productivity using
Cadbury Nigeria Plc as a case study. The main aim is to make research if indeed
health and safety measures can be regarded as a major contributor to the growth
and development of any organization. The research work is also serves as a
means to identify the variables that are controllable by management which to
certain degree have a direct impact on the performance.
The sources of data
collection was both primary and secondary with the application of
questionnaires as an instrument to gather the necessary data. The
questionnaires were properly completed after being administered and this was a
basis by which the primary data were collected. Textbooks, journals, articles,
law reports, newspapers publications, were collected as secondary data, and
also limitations to the study were indicated.
The hypothesis was tested
using chi-square test (X2) and the result were similar to those of
the responses drawn from the questionnaires.
The researcher was able to
discover that in Cadbury Nigeria Plc, employees are regarded as a major
contributor to the growth and development of any organization, and as such, it
is necessary that health measures should be put in place they are not
independent of organizational productivity.
Moreso, it can be seen
that employees health and safety has a large effect on organizational productivity.
As a result of this, it is of great importance and necessity that every
organization should create adequate health and safety measures in order to
protect employees.
TABLE OF CONTENT
Pages
Cover Page
Certification i
Dedication ii
Acknowledgement
iii
Abstract iv
Table of
Content v
CHAPTER ONE: Introduction
1.1 The background of the study 1
1.2 Statement of problem 3
1.3 Purpose of study 3
1.4 Research Questions 4
1.5 Research Hypothesis 4
1.6 Significance of the study 4
1.7 Scope of the study 5
1.8 Definition of terms 5
CHAPTER TWO
2.1 Introduction 7
2.2.1 Definition of health and safety 8
2.2 Significance of employee health and
safety 9
2.3 Occupational hazards and diseases 10
2.3.1 Protection against hazards 11
2.4 Causes of accidents 12
2.5 The cost of health and safety 13
2.6 Legal provisions on health and safety in
Nigeria 14
2.6.1 Factory act (1987) 14
2.6.2 Workmen compensation act 24
2.7 Accident proness theory 29
2.8 Safety measures/programmes 30
2.9 Productivity and its relationship with
employee
health and safety 31
2.10 Management of stress 32
CHAPTER THREE: Research Methodology
3.1 Introduction 40
3.2 Research instrument and design 40
3.3 Research hypothesis 40
3.4 Characteristics of the study population 41
3.5 Sampling design procedures 41
3.6 Data collection instrument 41
3.7 Test of validity and reliability of the
instrument 42
3.8 Administration of data collection
instrument 42
3.9 Procedures for analyzing collection of
data 42
3.10 Limitation of the research methodology used 42
3.11 Historical background of Cadbury Nigeria Plc
43
CHAPTER FOUR: Data presentation, analysis and
interpretation
4.1 Introduction 46
4.2 Questionnaires administration 46
4.3 Responses to statement and question of
inquiry 48
4.4 Testing of hypothesis 56
CHAPTER FIVE: Summary, Conclusion and Recommendations
5.0 Introduction 58
5.1 Summary of findings 58
5.2 Conclusion 60
5.3 Recommendations 61
5.4 Suggestions for further studies 62
References 63
Appendix 65
Questionnaires 66
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 THE
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Health
and safety is an important aspect of any organization requiring adequate
attention. “The practise of occupational health enjoyed a boost after the
second world war, when most European countries embarked on an industrialization
drive and in the process were confronted with the ills of industries” (Clarke,
2004).
Since
then, various discipline embodied in occupational medicine, nursing, hygiene,
and safety have evolved to various extent in different countries. Other
discipline with strong links to occupational health including occupational
health and occupational aspects of ergonomics, psychology, toxicology, and more
recently industrial relation, have evolved alongside and are now accepted as
disciplines closely related to occupational health and safety.
The
major objective of every organisation is maximising profit at the minimum cost
and one of the ways in which this can be achieved, is by increasing
productivity. Every organisation has an obligation to utilise properly the
factors of production in order to acquire organisation productivity and growth.
Among
the various factors of production, labour has been noted the most unique.
This
is because, it has a mind to think, to resist and therefore to take actions
which may be in favour of the organization, and as such the organisation has a
great role to play in ensuring that the labour force is properly catered for.
Accidents
in organisation are inevitable occurrence. Some of these are fatal, and could
result into temporary or permanent disability. The cost these accidents is of
great detriment to the organisation. Therefore, when an organization takes time
and effort in looking into health hazards and accident in its environment, it
could result in employee job satisfaction, and a satisfied employee is a
productive employee.
In
many industries, the importance of employee’s health is played down. This is
often illustrated by the delegation of employee’s safety and health as an
additional responsibility to cover burdened professionals specialised in other
discipline rather creating full time position for employee’s safety and health
specialist (Clark 2004). At other times, workers and workers union often do not
appreciate the extent that could arise from poor employees safety and health
conditions and therefore spend their energies fighting for remuneration
investing much less effort into work and improved occupation. In the same vein,
industries have very little in supporting employees health and safety services
and research.
To
have a greater knowledge on employee’s health and safety, it would be required
to distinguish between the two parties:
Safety
is mainly concerned with the prevention aspect of diseases or accident, the aim
being to ensure that any accident or diseases does not occur due to ignorance
or inability of the employers or employees to forestall such occurrences.
While
employees health on the other hand, ensures that the outbreak of any diseases
occurrence is curtailed and adequately handled “this is what influences
organizations in embarking on safety and health programme for their employees
through operations of medical schemes”. (Hienneman 1983)
“The
price of not paying attention to employees health is injurious, the accident,
diseases, lost work time, death etc have multiplying effects on the fortunes of
the organization” (Esuyi 2002). Particularly, the gross is born by the workers
as his/her productivity begins to dwindle. It is thus the aim of this research
to navigate into the depth of employee’s health and safety and to determine its
impact on workers’ productivity.
This
study focuses on “employee’s health workers’ productivity” productivity can
simply be defined as the relationship between the output generated and by a
production or service system and the input provided to create this output.
Industrial accident and diseases lead to loss of working days, which could mean
decrease in productivity.
Health
and safety of employees is therefore an important issue which if studied
carefully and thoroughly, could be of great benefit to the organisation as well
as the nation at large. Thus, the improvement of health and safety measures
could yield the best result in terms of productivity and general development of
the nation.
1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM.
A
popular maxim exist that will be difficult to refute, “HEALTH IS WEALTH”. In
the light of their maxim, it is believed that the good health of workers will
invariably results to improved workers productivity.
It
is in this context that the intention here would be to find out how health and
safety management operates its importance and its actual practise in
organisation using WAPCO PLC. The actual problem lies between the stated
importance and the actual practice of health and safety. The problem of
inadequate employee’s health and safety measures in organisation is an issue
which has been in industry for long. Effort has been made in both developed and
developing countries to curb down this problem, by frequently bringing out act
and laws to protect the employees from physical, mental and psychological
health hazards in the organization.
The
developed countries have sort various ways of reducing this problem because
they are aware of the cost, the developing countries till today are still
fighting this problem. This issue of employees’ health and safety is a problem
because, health and safety hazard are real and potential danger which can cause
accident or ill health at work, and can directly or indirectly affect the
workers, family, organization, and the nation. This may be hidden as noise,
dust, chemical poisoning, or can be caused by natural factor such as climate.
All these hazards, in which ever form it comes have serious implications on
health and safety of workers and the existence of this problem could be of
great detriment to the community and nation at large. For this reason, solution
of this problem would without doubt lead to solution of many other problems.
This can be done through a concerted approach by employer, the government, and
the workers whose overall effort can make major improvement towards making our
work places healthy and safe.
1.3 PURPOSE OF STUDY
Employees
health and safety and its effect on productivity, has become a wide spread
issue and is of paramount importance now more than ever. It is essential to
promote good health and safety practices, and ensure the adequate provision of safety devices. This research work is
aimed at examining health and safety employee in WAPCO PLC.
Therefore,
these are the specific objectives following:
1.
To examine the various factors that
may affect/influence employee health and
safety hazard in the workplace.
2.
To examine and identify some
contemporary health and safety hazard in the workplace.
3.
To understand some vital
development in employee health and safety legislature.
4.
To evaluate instrument used by
WAPCO PLC to reduce stress related injuries, diseases and death.
5.
To determine, if WAPCO PLC have a
safe and healthy working conditions.
1.4 RESEARCH
QUESTIONS
In order to make valid the
purpose of this research, the following questions would be addressed:
1.
Does employee health affect the
organisation productivity
2.
Does the provision of adequate safety material
influence the prevention of occupational hazards?
3.
Does the productivity of medical
facilities in WAPCO PLC have affect the productivity of a worker?
4. Does safety and prevention of
occupation hazard reduce the number of accident that occurs?
5.
Does adequate safety measures a
criterion for the reduction of accident in a work place?
6. Is the provision of employee’s
facilities necessary for the promotion of an organization life time?
7. Does
the good working condition act as motivating factors to the employees?
1.5 RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS
1. H1:
Employees health measures are not independent of organizational productivity?
2. H2:
Safety measures cannot be used independently as a criterion for reduction of
accident in work environment?.
3. H3: Medical facilities in WAPCO PLC do not
improve workers productivity?
4. H4: A safety
environment is not independent of employee’s motivation?
1.6 JUSTIFICATION OF THE STUDY
The
research would be great significance to WAPCO NIGERIA PLC as an organization
and the nation at large, in order to improve their employee’s health and safety
standards and as such reduce their cost. Also recommendation would be made on
ways in which the employers, government, trade union could jointly make effort
to promote health and safety in WAPCO NIGERIA PPLC thereby acting as a catalyst
to influence other industries and generally improving the whole nation if this
research is successfully carried out.
[
The
study would further assist in showing how the various acts enacted are useful
and should be implemented. If the study is accepted and appreciated, it could
be significance to the nation as well.
1.7 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The
researcher intends concentrating this research on the corporate activities of
WAPCO NIGERIA PLC as regards the occupational health and safety measures put in
place to ensure employees job satisfaction and organizational productivity,
thereby maintaining the lead in the promoting of health and safety of employees
in Nigeria.
1.8 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
The
nature of this research study necessitates the use of both primary and
secondary data. A maximum of 60 questionnaires shall be administered to both
top and junior workers in WAPCO PLC and (Placeholder) primary data based on
these questionnaire reports, periodicals, magazines and many other publications
shall be used for the collection of the second data.
The
interpretation of these collected data shall be done by adopting the simple
percentage methods, tables, graphs and charts shall be drawn and the chi-square
method shall be used in the final analysis of data with the aid of the
statistical package for social sciences (SPSS).
The
survey method would be used to carry out research on this project. This method
has been chosen because majority of correspondents would be selected from
educated and presumably knowledgeable people in the field of occupational
health and safety.
1.9 DEFINITION OF TERMS
i. ACCIDENT:
A sudden and unexpected event that cause injury or damage. Also means any
unplanned and controlled event which results in damage whether through injury
or disease to an employee, plant and equipment.
ii. EMPLOYEE:
Anyone who works for wages or salaries in the service of an employer.
iii. HAZARDS: Is a source of risk that
could result in damage or loss.
iv. HEALTH:
A state of being hale, sound or whole in body, mind and soul, that is from
physical diseases or pain.
v. JOB
SATISFACTION: Is the feeling of contentment that an employee have over the
achievement gotten from work, for which the employee receives regular payments.
vi. LABOUR
TURNOVER: This is the cause and effect of employment apart from being a
measure of the moral and efficiency or otherwise of workers (Indian Labour
Statistic) (1962)
Also
means the number of workers hired to replace those who have left during a
period of time, that is the ratio of
those who left to the average number of workers employed.
vii. MOTIVATION:
It is the willingness to work, it is the drive and stimulation that enables
individuals to perform, it is a fuel that drives you to perform a particular
task.
viii. UNEMPLOYMENT:
A state idleness experienced by personnel who as members of the labour force
perceive themselves, and are perceived by others as capable to work.
ix. PRODUCTIVITY:
Is the ratio or proportion of output of the commodity to the factors of
production. According to “Mayadeo and Karmarker” may be defined “as the ratio
between the production of a given measured by volume and one and more
corresponding input factors also measured by volume”
x. ORGANIZATION:
A group of people who come together to form a business in other to achieve a
particular aim or objectives.
xi. SAFETY:
This is the condition of being safe; it improves freedom from danger and
hazards or keeping of oneself or other safe especially from danger of accident
or diseases.