Work motivation and employee engagement at a state-owned enterprise in Richards Bay.

Abstract

The study aimed to explore the relationship between work motivation and employee engagement at a selected parastatal organisation in Richards Bay, South Africa. Employees are a company's greatest asset, and increasing their motivation and engagement is essential for corporate expansion. Organisations are confronted with several difficulties, including high absenteeism rates, low productivity, and high labour turnover rates which are related to low employee engagement and a lack of motivation at work. The following theories were used in the study, that is Herzberg's Two Factor Theory and Alderfer's ERG Theory, both of which recognize the components that are related to motivation. The researcher selected Kahn’s Need Satisfying approach, Job Demand Resource Model (2007)and Lawrence & Nohria's Four Drive Theory (2002) to unpack the factors of employee engagement. A quantitative research approach was adopted to collect primary data in the form of questionnaires. Standardized questionnaires namely the revised Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES-9) were used to measure employee engagement and they were distributed electronically and manually. The Work Preference Inventory was employed to evaluate both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. The Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 24 was used to analyze the data since it enabled data analysis and statistical test execution. The research population consisted of 329 junior employees from the parastatal the”Krejcie and morgan model” suggested that 180 participants was appropriate for the study. The researcher received 93 responses. The findings show that only 52% of the employees feel like they are bursting with energy as they are not motivated, while approximately 48% feel happy when they are working intensely. Only 41% indicated that they feel like going to work every day. The study found about 54% of the respondents enjoy trying to solve complex problems at their workplace, while about 56% enjoy tackling problems that are completely new to them. The Work Preference Inventory, which measures intrinsic and extrinsic motivation in individuals, is built to be reliable as it captures the key components of the intrinsic drive, which are self-determination, competence, and work participation. The study concluded that motivation was related to needs satisfaction and a product that comes from a cognitively conscious decision. Given the limitations of the research and operational nature of the parastatal setting, it proved difficult to get questionnaires promptly as the employees follow a shift schedule. The study recommended the need for organisations to involve employees in decision-making to address employee engagement and employee motivation. It further recommends the need to invest in the two constructs.